"The Island of Misfit Christmas Specials" Talkback

[Dsneybuf]

Frozen II actually has larger domestic and worldwide box-office grosses than Frozen did: Franchise: Frozen

 

[Norman Krasner]

 

[AllenJ]

Some possible suggestions to go with last year's Tom & Jerry review:

Contrary to what you said in that review, Tom & Jerry actually have two legitimate Christmas specials (that is, if we're counting direct-to-video releases). They are Tom & Jerry: A Nutcracker Tale (released 2007) and Tom & Jerry: Santa's Little Helpers (released 2014). The former is noteworthy for being Joe Barbera's final animated project before his death.

Cartoon Network used to have a prime time show called Toon Heads, which presented classic Warner Bros. and MGM cartoons with historic trivia in-between. Episodes typically contained three cartoons with some sort of theme (such as the development of a character or the work of a director), though they occasionally had special one-hour episodes as well. One of these was "Cartoon Christmas," which contained four of the same cartoons as the TBS special ("The Captain's Christmas," "Peace on Earth," "The Night Before Christmas," and "Bedtime for Sniffles"). The show hasn't been officially released anywhere since it originally aired, but several episodes can be found on the Internet Archive (including the Christmas special).

 

[twilicorn]

I personally consider Olaf's Frozen Adventure to be the Shrek the Third of the Frozen franchise. Marking the point where it became less of a phenomenon and more of a mundane property aimed at children (though in Olaf's case it can be attributed to a particularly boneheaded decision on behalf of Disney, Shrek the Third simply had none of the writers or directors from the previous two Shreks involved). Consequently, Frozen 2 can be compared to Shrek Forever After, as both are somewhat mature follow-ups.

Come to think of it, Olaf's Frozen Adventure can also be compared to the Clone Wars movie - it was just going to be the first few episodes of the TV show, but then George Lucas decided to have those episodes made into a movie and rushed into theaters. See also this excellent video by Schaffrillas:

 

[Dsneybuf]

If Frozen II did underperform, I'd blame the poorly-constructed script and the ad campaign's dependence on the laziest-written song I've ever heard Elsa sing.
(The existence of said song in the first place doesn't help)

 

[mimitchi33]

Do you want to trash a snowman? Platypus Comix kicks off a new season of MISFIT CHRISTMAS SPECIALS with 2017's uninvited box office guest, Olaf's Frozen Adventure!

The Island of Misfit Christmas Specials

This is my all-time favorite Christmas special, and your review of it was funny, especially the part about cutting down a tree and the screenbug part. If I recall correctly, I did watch this exact broadcast (I watch the special on ABC every year), but our neighborhood's power went off for a minute during the scene where Anna asks Elsa if they have any traditions. I also have the original 2017 premiere of the special on TV recorded to a digital file, but it's fairly low-quality, as the capture card used was meant to be used with VHS tapes and not HD-TV (I just got a better one to record episodes of Donkey Hodie with). And I remember seeing it in theaters, too, and luckily, we only got two trailers before it started (Incredibles 2 and Paddington 2). I also watch the special every November 1st, as it signals the start of the holiday season.

 

[Chris]

I saw your Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer review from 1978 and was wondering if you'd like my airing from 1983.

 

[twilicorn]

This is my all-time favorite Christmas special, and your review of it was funny, especially the part about cutting down a tree and the screenbug part. If I recall correctly, I did watch this exact broadcast (I watch the special on ABC every year), but our neighborhood's power went off for a minute during the scene where Anna asks Elsa if they have any traditions. I also have the original 2017 premiere of the special on TV recorded to a digital file, but it's fairly low-quality, as the capture card used was meant to be used with VHS tapes and not HD-TV (I just got a better one to record episodes of Donkey Hodie with). And I remember seeing it in theaters, too, and luckily, we only got two trailers before it started (Incredibles 2 and Paddington 2). I also watch the special every November 1st, as it signals the start of the holiday season.

I remember seeing it in the theater before Coco, too! I also remember some people in my circle were talking about the backlash about it showing before Coco, therefore bloating the runtime. I thought it was decent enough as a Christmas special and as a part of the Frozen franchise. But it doesn't quite compare to the spectacle of Tamatoa Olaf - thanks "Olaf Presents" for inflicting Olaf saying "I ate my grandma" onto us (also I put Tamatoa Olaf into two of my Hunger Games sims!)

 

[Dsneybuf]

I saw Olaf's Frozen Adventure not at the beginning of Coco, but rather in a digital bundle with some older Disney winter shorts. I couldn't stay invested in the main feature, but my inner Mary Blair enthusiast appreciates getting to see "Once Upon a Wintertime" in HD.

Ironically, while I snarked about Frozen II here earlier this week, it does contain the franchise's biggest emotional punch for me:

 

[Peter Paltridge]

This week, Platypus Comix travels back fifteen years (!!!) to re-squeeze one of our earliest and worst Christmas misfits, THE WISH THAT CHANGED CHRISTMAS! Watch out for psychotic owls!

The Island of Misfit Christmas Specials

 

[mimitchi33]

That was an interesting read. I really enjoyed this review. Also, if you're going to revise earlier articles, I expect to see ones for Jingle Bell Rock and The Story of Santa Claus, especially since the former is online now.

 

[Norman Krasner]

Chrismas every day

 

[Peter Paltridge]

In this week's MISFIT CHRISTMAS SPECIAL, what do you get when you enlist a horde of 1980s child actors to track down Santa Claus? You get whatever this is!

The Island of Misfit Christmas Specials

 

[Norman Krasner]

Andy Williams & The NBC Kids - Easter in Rome​

 

[ShadowBlinky]

Nelson: ANDY WILLIAMS?!

 

[Peter Paltridge]

Andy Williams & The NBC Kids - Easter in Rome​

There were TWO???

Did Andy have another relative who slighted the Easter Bunny?

 

[Norman Krasner]

Rockin' Reindeer Christmas (1990)​

 

[Norman Krasner]

Good Ol Country Christmas​

 

[Norman Krasner]

the short lived Ace Ventura toon had a special

 

[Erased Paper]

the short lived Ace Ventura toon had a special

Yup, it premiered in primetime (8:00PM) on CBS on December 13, 1995. Three days later, it was rerun in the Saturday morning schedule. Every website has the original airdates for this show wrong, by the way.