Classic claymation Christmas specials, ranked from least festive to most joyful

10. The Leprechaun's Christmas Gold (1981)

There's only so much story that can be drawn from popular mythology around Christmas. Sometimes, Rankin/Bass specials had to draw on other holidays as well. One of their later (and weakest) works splices together Christmas with the leprechaun folktales of St. Patrick's Day. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it's not a cohesive fit.

9. Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey/The First Christmas (1977)

The two Rankin/Bass specials with the longest names are often shown together, so we're also grouping them for this list. Like The Little Drummer Boy, Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey is based on a Christmas song and tackles the Jesus side of Christmas rather than the Santa side. Its problem is that the premise just isn't as moving. The First Christmas tries to tell an origin story for snow, but we prefer the anthropomorphic winter spirits that pop up in other specials.

8. The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (1985)

Points for weirdness, but of the two Santa Claus origin stories on this list, this adaptation of L. Frank Baum's story of the same name is definitely the lesser. With one big exception later down this list, Rankin/Bass holiday specials were often more effective at adapting songs than full-length stories.

7. Jack Frost (1979)

There are many personifications of winter in the Rankin/Bass canon. The Winter Warlock of Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town projects an intimidating icy facade, but when that melts away, he's sweet and helpful. By contrast, the wizard Winterbolt from Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July is bitter cold all the way through. Needless to say, Jack Frost is the most romantic of all these winter spirits. His solo tale evokes The Little Mermaid as Jack tries to become human to pursue true love. Still, the most interesting elements are the steampunk servants employed by the evil Cossack king Kraus—perhaps the most haunting Rankin/Bass portrait of how greed and power can isolate one from the rest of humanity.

6. Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1976)

The attempt to create some mythology around New Year's is actually pretty inventive: Father Time's clockwork soldiers, the Archipelago of Last Years where past Baby New Year's retire after their year is done, and Big Ben the Clockwork Whale are all fun visuals.

5. The Little Drummer Boy (1968)

The Little Drummer Boy stands a bit apart from the rest of this list. Though it is based on a popular Christmas carol, just like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town, The Little Drummer Boy concerns itself with the religious side of Christmas rather than the cultural aspects. This perspective gives it a darker tone than most; the opening scene features the protagonist getting kidnapped by slavers, and we later learn that he had to watch his family's house burn down even before that. Voice actor Teddy Eccles gives the titular character some misanthropic sass, making the big pivotal performance in the Bethlehem manger even more emotionally satisfying.

4. Rudolph & Frosty's Christmas in July (1979)

The longest Rankin/Bass holiday special by a long shot, Rudolph & Frosty's Christmas in July is also the most epic. It's like The Avengers for the Rankin/Bass Christmas Claymation Cinematic Universe. Characters from multiple previous specials return for this one: not just the titular Rudolph and Frosty (the latter appearing in stop-motion rather than 2D animation for the first and only time), but also Jack Frost and even Big Ben the Clockwork Whale from Rudolph's Shiny New Year. Such an assemblage is required to overcome the evil wizard Winterbolt, who ruled the northern wastes before Santa's arrival. We learn that Rudolph's red nose was a gift from the good-natured Lady Boreal, and the storm that he guided Santa through in his original special was Winterbolt's first attempt at revenge. The second attempt here may be a little too convoluted at times, but watching a holiday special with such scope is fun.

3. Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970)

Decades before Batman Begins, Santa Claus got his very own origin story that fleshed out every element of his legend. Why is he sometimes called "Kris Kringle"? Because that was the name of the elf family that adopted him as an orphan baby. Why do his reindeer fly? Because that was how he and his allies were able to escape from jail one time.

Santa may not be Jesus, but he does believe in redemption, and "Put One Foot in Front of the Other" is one of the highlights of the Rankin/Bass canon: a joyous, energetic song about turning your life around.

2. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

"The one that started it all" usually deserves credit in lists like these. This is especially true when the film in question is as endlessly charming as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, which has aired on TV every single year since its 1964 debut. Santa Claus is only a side character in Rudolph, which allows for the introduction of unforgettable characters and concepts: from the aspiring elf dentist named Hermey to the relatable inhabitants of the Island of Misfit Toys.

Related: 3 things that make Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer so special

1. The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974)

Many of the titles on this list have been about explaining holidays: When was the first Christmas? How did Santa come to be? And so on. What makes The Year Without a Santa Claus especially interesting is that it tackles a disruption to tradition rather than an origin. One year, Santa (Mickey Rooney) decides he's had enough of working himself sick for a global population that seemingly no longer bothers to treat each other with even the most minimal brotherly love. So Mrs. Claus (Shirley Booth, in her final performance) and a ragtag band of elves and reindeer set out on a quest—not to convince Santa he doesn't deserve a break (he does!), but to push everyone else in the world to follow his selfless example. In the process, they meet unforgettable characters like Heat Miser (George S. Irving) and Snow Miser (Dick Shawn), whose trademark songs are probably stuck in your head right now.