8/10
That Was Fun
23 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
In an episode that is pretty much a comedy, a bunch of werecreatures get together at a meeting of Shapeshifters Anonymous. Their newest member, Robert, is troubled that he might be killing people.

The others, including a werecheetah, a wereturtle, and a wereboar (and a furry!) , assure Robert that it's okay. And that Kris Kringle has actually been tasked by God to kill all werecreatures with his "Satan's Claws"), and has an army of helper (mall Santas) helping him. They storm the church, the werecreatures defend themselves, and then get a potion from their final member, Ryan, that lets them turn into their animal forms so they can fight Kringle.

It turns out that Ryan is the First Werecreature, Bob, but the furry decapitates Kringle before he and Ryan can fight. She can't turn into her desired werehippo form, but does make a wish on Kringle's body and gets Lil Yachty (??) and a million dollars. The end.

The Christmas Special is comedy through and through, except for some horrific scenes near the end where werecreatures decapitate men dressed as Santa and pull out their intestines. Even then, the graphic disembowelments are portrayed in the most inoffensive, comic book style possible. At least, by 2020 standards. If you're old school, your opinion may vary.

Nobody really has much personality. Robert is a schlub, Irene the werecheetah is oversexed, Andy the wereboar is a self-centered pig, Scott the wereturtle is an ex-Marine and exposition machine., Phyllis the furry is your typical sassy TV black woman, so don't expect any originality there.

Derek Russo as Ryan/Bob doesn't have much to do. I do like his bemusement at the end that it was so easy to kill Kringle, just by Phyllis cutting off his head. And you do get to see a lot of his abs at the end.

Overall, the Holiday Special is a disposable... holiday special. It comes across as more of a 'Tales From the Crypt' episode with the over-the-top humor, but 'Creepshow' in its first season had a fair amount of humor, too. But the comedy is up-front here. Don't go in expecting too much except for the weird alternate history (Kringle gives toys to the orphans he's created) and you won't be disappointed.

The special starts a bit slow, and doesn't really pick up speed until the Kringle connection is brought in. Nobody really has anything outstanding to do: Anna Camp is cute as the sex-crazed schoolteacher/werecheetah. Pete Burris as Scott the Wereturtle has a pretty thankless role as the exposition machine, but he manages to bring some characterization to the part. And... I have no idea who Lil Yachty is. Sorry.

But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?
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