So, what is probably a mistake or placeholder on Amazon is generating rumors of a new Friendship Is Magic Christmas special, which does not have me enthusiastic. I hate the pop-cultural detritus that surrounds Christmas, and the only good Christmas special is a cynical, subversive one (Invader ZIM had probably the best ever). So basically, this special-that-probably-doesn't-exist could be a good Friendship Is Magic episode or a good Christmas special, but it's trying to be both, and will therefore be neither.
But that's a personal bias, mostly. My main thought from this is to question whether a pony Christmas special implies the existence of a pony Jesus. And if so, was he crucified? How would that even work? Ponies don't bend that way!
Well, come to that, why did the Flintstones celebrate Christmas?
ReplyDeleteBecause the joke of The Flinstones--the ONLY joke the show has--is that despite the Stone Age setting it is exactly like the typical 1950s sitcom in every way. You have to remember, the 1950s were a time of MASSIVE social upheaval and a desperate effort to pretend nothing had changed. Millions of people who grew up in the cities or small farming towns came back from the war and started families in suburbia, with no idea of what life was supposed to be like now, and the sitcoms taught them. The function of shows like Leave It to Beaver and Father Knows Best was not to reflect a culture or display time-worn values, but to pretend that the new values of suburbia--conformity, consumerism, a redefinition of "family" into a much smaller group--had a history, that this newly invented culture was a timeworn, ancient thing. The Flintstones just takes that to its logical conclusion.
DeleteI should note that the above applies only to white American culture, which is what the sitcoms portrayed/invented/normalized. ("White" is largely a 20th century invention in the U.S.--only 30-40 years before WWII you have race riots of Anglo-Saxons against Irish and Italians.) Other ethnic groups didn't really get sitcoms, and had to find their own ways to define their cultures in these decades of upheaval.
DeleteMy kingdom for an edit button... to clarify, "white" was used in the U.S. as a term to describe an ethnic group for a long time, but in the 18th and 19th century basically meant only Protestants of Anglo-Saxon descent, or occasionally expanded to include the French and Germans as well. It did not include Catholics, southern Europeans, or eastern Europeans until well into the 20th century, and I expect it'll be expanded to include Hispanics some time in the next couple decades.
DeleteQueen Majesty died for your sins.
DeleteYeah Christmas really wouldn't work for FiM, but considering Equestria already has Hearth's Warming Eve I really doubt they'll be giving them Christmas as well.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I am personally a big fan of A Charlie Brown Christmas and The Muppet Christmas Carol.
Muppet Christmas Carol is best Christmas Carol.
DeleteAlthough Doctor Who does give it a run for it's money.
The Doctor Who Cristmas Carol is the only Christmas episode of anything I've ever seen that was simultaneously: A) Legitimately about being a Christmas episode (not just a normal episode that happens to be set in December) B) Not cynical or subversive in its tone and C) As good as a normal episode. Though I suspect that if I examined further, I'd find that anything else that comes close to that goal has >50% odds of being an homage to A Christmas Carol if only because doing so automatically forces the writers to use a proper plot structure with a conflict that's not inherently head-bangingly sappy.
DeleteHmm. Anyone up for a pony Christmas Carol starring the great and powerful Trixie? Though immediately piggybacking on that train of thought comes an Its A Wonderful Life episode starring Spike, which might make me gouge my eyes out. Yeah, maybe let's stick to "original" plots for our ponies.
Didn't they already do this with "Hearth's Warming Eve?"
ReplyDeleteI've got a great deal of affection for the He-Man/She-Ra Christmas Special, which could give both the Flintstones and MLP a run for their money when it comes to the "Societies that have no reason to celebrate Christmas" title.
ReplyDeleteThat the two kids from the "Real World" can't actually explain what Christmas is is even better:
SKELETOR: Tell me more about this Christmas.
KID: Well, it’s a wonderful time of year. Everyone has lots of fun!
SKELETOR: You mean they get in fights?
KID: No! No, they have fun!
SKELETOR: Fights are fun. I like fights!
KID: And they give each other presents!
SKELETOR: And when you open them they explode, right?
The number of potshots taken at the Transformers is also hilarious. It's on Netflix and completely worth the 22 minutes for the number of jaw dropping blank stares it will illicit.
"I hate the pop-cultural detritus that surrounds Christmas, and the only good Christmas special is a cynical, subversive one (Invader ZIM had probably the best ever)."
ReplyDeleteHave you seen the Supernatural Christmas Special?
I'm afraid I've never seen any Supernatural, sorry. Is the Christmas special something I could watch with no knowledge of the show?
DeleteJust remembered, I thought the Christmas episode of Buffy "Amends" was really good.
ReplyDelete