Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
The holidays mean different things to different people. But if there’s one thing all winter revelers can agree on, it’s that the holidays have inspired some of the most memorable moments in movie and TV history. Without further ado (and a-ho ho ho), we present The Ultimate Holiday Showdown, a bracket-style tournament to determine the best pop culture moment that the month of December has ever produced. Vote early and often! And Happy Holidays!
Just as the holiday season is ramping up (just two more shopping weekends to go!), the Ultimate Holiday Showdown has reached the second round, or what we’re calling the Snowy Sixteen. The first round is in the books, and the favorites are looking formidable. Top seeds advanced across the board, with one notable upset: #5 seed The Santa Clause bested #4 seed The Muppet Christmas Carol in the ’80s/’90s region. Given that Home Improvement‘s Tim Taylor made it all the way to the finals of our Best! Dad! Ever! bracket, we’re thinking Tim Allen might be a serious Cinderella contender.
Now that the dark horses have largely been vanquished, however, it’s time for the big dogs to start chucking snowballs at one another. All for your votes! The second round of voting opened at noon today, so you can either head right over and get voting or keep on reading for analysis of the matchups.
The Best TV Specials Ever
Four titans of Christmas meet on a snowy battlefield. One a moody, bald grade-schooler; one a gregarious snowman who’s largely unconcerned with how tenuous and temperature-dependent his existence is; one a bullied outcast who’s a little too quick to let bygones be bygones, if you think about it; one an aggrieved and solitary gentleman whose neighbors don’t appear to observe quiet hours. WHO WILL ADVANCE?
Charlie Brown vs. Frosty
Honestly, imagine how glum Charlie Brown would get if he had a friend who melted if he set foot inside a greenhouse? We’d have to put him on suicide watch. The Peanuts gang has always been famously melancholy, though, and the holidays are actually a great occasion to point out, every so often, that kids can still be mean, and people can still be shortsighted about the holidays, and runty Christmas trees can still be overlooked in the lot. A Charlie Brown Christmas appeals to the part of us that sees all that and loves Christmas anyway. Frosty the Snowman, while fun and funny and at times pretty sad as well, doesn’t quite tap into the same vein.
#1 seed A Charlie Brown Christmas [Where to stream A Charlie Brown Christmas] vs. #4 seed Frosty the Snowman [Where to stream Frosty the Snowman]
VOTE ON A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS (1965) VS. FROSTY THE SNOWMAN (1969)
Rudolph vs. The Grinch
There are so many good Christmas songs in these two specials. It’s not just the title song in Rudolph. You also get Burl Ives singing “Holly Jolly Christmas,” and Yukon Cornelius’ “Silver and Gold.” Maybe skip the snoozy “There’s Always Tomorrow,” though. Meanwhile, The Grinch manages to work wonders with Dr. Seuss’ verbal acrobatics in “Trim Up the Tree,” lay down the Grinch’s malevolence in “Mr. Grinch,” and go full-on heartfelt in “Welcome Christmas.” This might be the toughest choice of the entire second round.
#2 seed Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer [Where to stream Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer] vs. #3 seed How the Grinch Stole Christmas [Where to stream How the Grinch Stole Christmas]
VOTE ON RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER (1964) VS. HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS (1966)
GOOD LUCK to everyone’s favorite holiday entertainment! Don’t forget, the second round of voting closes at noon on Monday, December 14th. Go vote!
