'Tis the Season: Holiday Episodes

It seems almost every time there’s a holiday, there’s an episode of some TV show celebrating it. (That is, except Arbor Day—there’s no love for Arbor Day.) Some holidays, of course, are more likely to have corresponding episodes than others. So without further ado, a list of the top holidays that TV likes to celebrate:

Honorable Mentions: Valentine’s Day, New Year’s Eve, 4^th of July

There would probably be more episodes surrounding 4^th of July if it weren’t in the middle of the summer hiatus for most shows. The New Year’s Eve episode generally has to replace the Christmas episode (also due to typical hiatus scheduling), so showrunners are required to make a decision between the two, and Christmas tends to win. Valentine’s Day can be a big deal on primetime soaps and some sitcoms, but still falls short compared to other TV holidays.

#3: Halloween

The Halloween episode is most common in sitcoms and shows with spookier bents. Straight-up dramas will occasionally include Halloween parties within the show, but rarely build episodes surrounding the holiday.

#2: Thanksgiving

This holiday is loved by shows about family—nothing says family drama like a big Thanksgiving dinner. Sitcoms also enjoy the potential wacky hijinks of trying to put together a Thanksgiving dinner.

#1: Christmas

And… the big one. There are several new Christmas episodes aired every year, among both dramas and sitcoms. Almost every show will, by its third season, have at least one episode dedicated to the holiday. And there are certain hallmarks of your traditional Christmas episode:

1) The Fight/Misunderstanding/Reconciliation: Almost all Christmas episodes will contain at least one argument between important characters, which will be resolved by the end when everyone realizes the importance of family/friendship/relationships/holiday spirit.

2) The Chanukkah mention/subplot: It’s rare that an entire episode will be devoted to Chanukkah, but there’s generally anywhere from a mention of the holiday to an entire subplot surrounding it (the Holiday Armadillo from Friends, for example).

3) The Famous Christmas Story Homage: Most of the time this will be to either A Christmas Carol or It’s a Wonderful Life, though How the Grinch Stole Christmas and A Charlie Brown Christmas are often at least alluded to (Glee recently did a full homage to the former). One of the show's main characters is often visited by ghosts or imagines what life would be like without them in order to learn some fabulous Christmas message (that will likely be forgotten when the show returns after the hiatus).

4) Schmaltz: The Christmas episode specialty. Christmas episodes are given leeway to be sappier than usual (which, for some shows, can put them ridiculously over-the-top); dramas become more heartfelt and dramatic, and sitcoms stray into the drama territory as well. There’s often a lesson learned in order to make the ending as sappy and happy as possible (There are rare shows which have holiday episodes ending unhappily, but these are few and far between).

So there’s your guide to TV Holidays. As you’re watching this year’s crop, try tracking which of them follow the four hallmarks and which don’t. And if you come up with any hallmarks you think should be added to the list, let me know.