Looking for some yuletide TV to watch? Here are ONE HUNDRED recommendations! The episodes are ranked as a combination of how overall-good TV they are and how in-the-Christmas-spirit they are, so you have to be good television and properly Christmas-y in order to be ranked high.
Here are my honorable mentions: It's Christmas in Canada (South Park, Season 7 Episode 15), Santa (New Girl, Season 2 Episode 11), The One with the Girl from Poughkeepsie (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 4 Episode 10), The Perfect Christmas (Miranda, Season 2 Episode 6), The Return of Doctor Mysterio (Doctor Who, 2016 Christmas Special).
100. LAXmas (New Girl, Season 4 Episode 11)
Going home for the holidays, suddenly trapped at an airport, mildly entertaining.
99. Miracle on Evergreen Terrace (The Simpsons, Season 9 Episode 10)
An average The Simpsons Christmas episode, with a nice story and some decent laughs.
98. The Pick (Seinfeld, Season 4 Episode 13)
The main plot has very little to do with the holidays, but the subplot of Elaine's Christmas-cards-gone-wrong is amusing.
97. Captain Latvia (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Season 4 Episode 10)
B99's weakest Christmas episode, but an entertaining Boyle adventure nonetheless.
96. Christmas Special (30 Rock, Season 3 Episode 6)
I swear, Jack Donaghy accidentally hitting his mother with his car is more Christmas-y than it sounds.
95. Christmas Scandal (Parks and Recreation, Season 2 Episode 12)
Some safe and warm by-the-numbers sitcom holiday fun, from a series still finding its footing.
94. Christmas Wishes (The Office (US), Season 8 Episode 10)
The Office never misses with its holiday episodes, even in the show's overall worst season.
93. Turncoat (Legends of Tomorrow, Season 2 Episode 11)
Travelling back in time to Christmas Day 1776 and meeting George Washington? Sign me up.
92. Woodland Critter Christmas (South Park, Season 8 Episode 14)
Not your feel-good family Yuletide fun, but a semi-masterclass in brutal dark humor.
91. The Strike (Seinfeld, Season 9 Episode 10)
Ah, Festivus - the fake holiday that became a semi-real thing due to this silly episode's popularity and legacy.
90. Resolution (Doctor Who, 2018 Christmas Special)
The Doctor Who Christmas episodes are always a blast, even when they're not especially focused on the Christmas setting.
89. The Abominable Bride (Sherlock, Pre-season 3 Christmas Special)
The Christmas special of BBC's Sherlock is a delightful bit of fun, albeit not all that Christmas-y.
88. Never Meet Your Heroes (Hawkeye, Season 1 Episode 1)
The entire 6-episode Marvel series is set in the holiday season, with some episodes being more festive than others, and the opening act has its share of fun with the premise.
87. The One with Ross's Step Forward (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 8 Episode 11)
One of many decent F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Xmas episodes to watch this year in Matthew Perry's memory.
86. The One with the Routine (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 6 Episode 10)
The gang looking for Monica's hidden presents is semi-classic holiday sitcom hijinks.
85. Dark Waters (Arrow, Season 4 Episode 9)
Christmastime in Star City is jeopardized when members of Team Arrow are kidnapped by Damien Darhk! Exciting superhero action ensues!
84. 404 Not Found (Mr. Robot, Season 4 Episode 4)
Darlene's conversations with the drunken mall Santa are quite illuminating, while Tyrell Wellick's trip to the snowy woods takes an odd turn in this 'Pine Barrens meets Christmas' story.
83. The Last Christmas (Modern Family, Season 11 Episode 9)
Luke and Manny's drama is a bit overdone, but other than that, this show's final Christmas episode is a delight.
82. Ricktional Mortpoon's Rickmas Mortcation (Rick and Morty, Season 6 Episode 10)
It's all fun and games until Morty drops his gift lightsaber.
81. The Man in the Yellow Suit (The Flash, Season 1 Episode 9)
This DC Comics show's first Christmas episode might be more riveting television than its later holiday specials, but for the cost of it not being terribly good as a Christmas episode.
80. Abu el Banat (The West Wing, Season 5 Episode 9)
Even in the worst season of Aaron Sorkin's political drama, Christmas in Jed Bartlet's White House proves to be a decent time despite all the drama.
79. Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics (South Park, Season 3 Episode 15)
Not the best iteration of the 'several short holiday stories told by a warm narrator' trope in TV, but dammit if that dreidel song isn't some seriously catchy Hanukkah representation.
78. Secret Santa (The Office (US), Season 6 Episode 13)
"A woman Santa, where does it stop?" is such a perfect satire of how certain people see the world.
77. Simpsons Christmas Stories (The Simpsons, Season 17 Episode 9)
Most of the mini-stories here are subpar, but Grandpa Simpson's hilarious feud with Santa makes up for it.
76. My Whole Life Is Thunder (30 Rock, Season 7 Episode 8)
I swear, Jack Donaghy's mother dying around the Holidays makes for more sitcom fun than it sounds.
75. The Present (The Flash, Season 3 Episode 9)
This midseason finale mixes dramatic storytelling with holiday cheer in a zany fashion!
74. A Tale of Two Santas (Futurama, Season 4 Episode 2)
SantaBot is back for more fun in this sequel to Futurama's original Christmas episode!
73. White Christmas (Black Mirror, Season 2 Episode 4)
This one is dark as hell, but pretty much the best possible Christmas episode that a series like Black Mirror could ever have.
72. Moroccan Christmas (The Office (US), Season 5 Episode 10)
Season's greetings from Dwight Schrute, cornering the market on a popular Christmas toy!
71. The One with the Inappropriate Sister (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 5 Episode 10)
Some good ol' run-of-the-mill holiday fun in this conventional instalment.
70. Marge Be Not Proud (The Simpsons, Season 7 Episode 11)
Laughs and life lessons can both be found from the tale of Bart's pre-Christmas shoplifting gone wrong!
69. Echoes (Hawkeye, Season 1 Episode 3)
The third episode of Marvel's yuletide miniseries is heavy on the action, but it makes it fun and the Christmas aesthetic is plentiful.
68. To Save Us All from Satan's Power (The Sopranos, Season 3 Episode 10)
The New Jersey mafia gearing up for local holiday cheer? This I gotta see.
67. The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis (The Big Bang Theory, Season 2 Episode 11)
I'm not the hugest Big Bang Theory fan overall, but you can't not like this semi-classic about the whole gifts-and-obligations dilemma.
66. The Runaway Bride (Doctor Who, 2006 Christmas Special)
Weddings, Christmases and alien invasions! Yay!
65. Stuck in a Moment (Modern Family, Season 10 Episode 10)
Typical Modern Family shenanigans are afoot, and Haley telling everyone about her pregnancy is a sweet moment.
64. The Old Man & the Tree (Modern Family, Season 5 Episode 10)
I love the Hemingway allegory in Jay and Manny's storyline, carrying all the way to the episode's title.
63. Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo (South Park, Season 1 Episode 9)
The original Mr. Hankey episode is just so weird. But weird is good.
62. Christmas (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Season 1 Episode 11)
Works as well as a midseason finale as it does as a Christmas episode - not all-time great, but very decent nonetheless.
61. Rattlestar Ricklactica (Rick and Morty, Season 4 Episode 5)
Jerry's misadventures with the Christmas lights are a hoot, even if the episode isn't all that conventionally festive otherwise.
60. So This Is Christmas? (Hawkeye, Season 1 Episode 6)
Hawkeye's final episode doesn't pull out all the stops as a satisfying finale to a superhero series, but it hits the holiday themes hard and well.
59. The Next Doctor (Doctor Who, 2008 Christmas Special)
This Victorian winter adventure is likely to leave you with a nice, warm smile.
58. Year's End (Arrow, Season 1 Episode 9)
Even thought it's heavy on larger storylines (including the debut of the show's best villain), this Arrow holiday episode still manages to include a lot of yuletide cheer in its runtime.
57. A Benihana Christmas (The Office (US), Season 3 Episode 10)
Some storylines are better than others in this high-energy two-parter, but at its best, it's hilarious.
56. Ron and Diane (Parks and Recreation, Season 5 Episode 9)
Jerry's family Christmas is so wholesome and so oddball funny at the same time, while Ron's romantic storyline is properly sweet.
55. The Time of the Doctor (Doctor Who, 2013 Christmas Special)
The Eleventh Doctor travels to a planet called Christmas (no, really) for his final episode, which is dramatic at times and whimsical at others.
54. Trouble Don't Last Always (Euphoria, pre-season 2 Christmas Special)
Consisting of the rambling existential conversation between two people in a diner, this might take the cake as the most bizarre Christmas episode in this whole top hundred.
53. Winter (Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, Episode 1)
There's a lot going on in this one-and-a-half hour reboot pilot, and this includes some sweet Xmas material amidst the general winter atmosphere.
52. Running to Stand Still (The Flash, Season 2 Episode 9)
Various bad guys of the more cartoonish archetype team up against the Flash in this massively entertaining Christmas superhero adventure.
51. A Very Big Mouth Christmas (Big Mouth, Season 5 Episode 8)
A few of the mini-stories in this fireside-narrated collection are a bit lazy, but others are very funny, making for an Xmas episode that feels, as the title implies, VERY Big Mouth.
50. The Futurama Holiday Spectacular (Futurama, Season 7 Episode 13)
A one-notch-better instance of the same formula, with the inclusive highlight being the mini-story of Hermes and his family celebrating Kwanzaa.
49. The One with Phoebe's Dad (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 2 Episode 9)
Silly gift exchanges and heartfelt moments ensue in this low-key but memorable Christmas episode.
48. Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer (Grey's Anatomy, Season 2 Episode 12)
This Grey's Anatomy holiday episode strikes an impressive balance of festive fun and dramatic storytelling - it doesn't feel like a 'Christmas special' nor an episode that just happens to take place around the holidays, but something in between.
47. In Excelsis Deo (The West Wing, Season 1 Episode 10)
The West Wing's first Christmas episode is a bit too heavy to score maximum points purely as a Christmas episode, but it's damn fine television for sure.
46. Holy Night (The West Wing, Season 4 Episode 11)
The fourth season's Christmas episode isn't as masterful as overall TV as In Excelsis Deo, but the multiple instances of holiday-related storylines make it a slightly better Christmas episode.
45. Voyage of the Damned (Doctor Who, 2007 Christmas Special)
A spaceship replica of the Titanic. What. Could. Go. Wrong.
44. Christmas Special: Parts 1&2 (The Office (UK), Season 3 Episodes 1&2)
The original British version of The Office concludes with a two-part Christmas special, containing memorable laughs and wholesome moments.
43. Classy Christmas (The Office (US), Season 7 Episode 11)
In this yuletide episode of the better The Office version (fight me), Holly Flax makes her anticipated return while Jim and Dwight's snowball fight starts out funny, then goes overboard, and then goes so overboard that it's funny again.
42. Partners, Am I Right? (Hawkeye, Season 1 Episode 4)
Out of all the episodes in Hawkeye's Christmas-set six-episode run, this one hit the holiday themes with the most graceful touch.
41. Secret Santa (30 Rock, Season 4 Episode 8)
In a rare 30 Rock Christmas episode that doesn't focus on Jack's mother issues, the man finds a new major love interest while the fake religion subplot makes for quality laughs.
40. The One Where Rachel Quits (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 3 Episode 10)
Ross helping a girl scout sell her cookies is as wholesome as the reason for his involvement is hilarious.
39. Forgiveness and Stuff (Gilmore Girls, Season 1 Episode 10)
Richard Gilmore is in the hospital, which makes for a surprisingly cozy setting despite the worries, as the often dysfunctional family is brought together.
38. The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (Doctor Who, 2011 Christmas Special)
A zany and whimsical sci-fi adventure, where the childlike amazement and Narnia vibes make up for the semi-sloppy writing.
37. Three Ghosts (Arrow, Season 2 Episode 9)
Oliver Queen is kidnapped, has flashbacks and hallucinates, and just when you're starting to think that this episode isn't very Christmas-y, the A Christmas Carol allegory hits you and the rest is history.
36. Dwight Christmas (The Office (US), Season 9 Episode 9)
This goofy Belsnickel adventure gets my vote for 'Best title for a Christmas episode ever'.
35. The End of Time (Doctor Who, 2009 Christmas Special)
David Tennant's final Doctor Who episode is a masterpiece, but it's debatable how good it is as a Christmas episode per se.
34. The Snowmen (Doctor Who, 2012 Christmas Special)
A zany Victorian atmosphere, exciting villains and a cameo by the great Sir Ian McKellen ensue!
33. The Christmas Lunch Incident (The Vicar of Dibley, Season 1 Episode 8)
Geraldine dragging herself from one Christmas lunch to the next after quadruple-booking herself makes for classic hijinks.
32. Express Christmas (Modern Family, Season 3 Episode 10)
This spontaneous-celebration story is a blast, with the entertaining premise making for many amusing situations.
31. Little Minnesota (How I Met Your Mother, Season 4 Episode 11)
Robin gets homesick around the holidays, and Marshall comes up with a cure that is as funny as it is sweet.
30. Undeck the Halls (Modern Family, Season 1 Episode 10)
Modern Family's very first Christmas episode takes a look at the holiday shenanigans of each household, having fun with every storyline and gaining extra points for the first appearance of fan favorite Frank Dunphy (Fred Willard).
29. The Husbands of River Song (Doctor Who, 2015 Christmas Special)
This one is quite simply a great time, from the appropriately colorful visuals to the romantic story.
28. The Bracebridge Dinner (Gilmore Girls, Season 2 Episode 10)
Several major characters come together for a wintery dinner in this charming and heartfelt feel-good episode.
27. Christmas Party (The Office (US), Season 2 Episode 10)
I'm still curious about what exactly was in Jim's teapot letter, but that doesn't take away from this episode's value as a stone cold classic.
26. The Race (Seinfeld, Season 6 Episode 10)
There aren't many things that are funnier than Kramer getting into trouble with his mall Santa job after reading Elaine's boyfriend's communist literature and subsequently ranting to the children about the rights of elf laborers. Fight the power, Santa!
25. Intro to Knots (Community, Season 4 Episode 10)
The Christmas episode of Community's worst season is subpar for the show's standards, but still light years ahead of many Christmas efforts from lesser shows, as there's plenty to enjoy in this thrilling whodunit.
24. Bartlet for America (The West Wing, Season 3 Episode 10)
The Christmas setting might just be a backdrop, but the themes in the story do fit in with the holiday's ideas, and only a robot wouldn't choke up when Jed demonstrates his loyalty to Leo by proving that he saved the 'Bartlet for America' napkin after all those years (my eyes are getting moist just thinking about it).
23. Xmas Story (Futurama, Season 2 Episode 8)
SantaBot's first outing makes for an episode that is everything you'd expect from a Futurama Christmas - fun, more fun, even more fun, and a good chunk of heart in the mix as well.
22. The One with the Holiday Armadillo (F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Season 7 Episode 10)
Having re-watched this instalment to death over the years, I still must admit that there's no getting around its placement as the definitive F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Christmas (and Hanukkah) episode.
21. The Constant (Lost, Season 4 Episode 5)
Okay, only a part of this mind-bending masterpiece takes place on Christmas, but that part hits so incredibly hard that it makes for very righteous holiday viewing.
20. Last Christmas (Doctor Who, 2014 Christmas Special)
Nick Frost as time-traveling Santa Claus is legendary. End of story.
19. White Christmas (Modern Family, Season 7 Episode 9)
Every major character has an interesting storyline in this misadventure that is hilarious at times and profound at others.
18. The Pontiac Bandit Returns (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Season 2 Episode 10)
Doug Judy, one of the best recurring characters in sitcom history, makes his second appearance in this firecracker of pure holiday fun.
17. Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (The Simpsons, Season 1 Episode 1)
Not many shows have a Christmas special as their very first episode, but the Simpsons pilot pulls it off and is one for the ages.
16. Winter (The Vicar of Dibley, Season 3 Episode 2)
The hands-down best episode of this quirky British sitcom offers both tears and laughter.
15. Impact Winter (The West Wing, Seson 6 Episode 9)
An idealistic congressman's family Christmas gathering is interrupted by Josh Lyman knocking on the door and urging him to run for President - and the rest is history.
14. Carol of the Bells (Ted Lasso, Season 2 Episode 4)
This feel-good Christmas episode (released in the midst of summer, because why not) really nails the Hallmark vibe.
13. Citizen Knope (Parks and Recreation, Season 4 Episode 10)
Leslie is feeling down, until the gang unites to give her the best possible Christmas present - not gonna lie, I cried like a baby at this one.
12. Symphony of Illumination (How I Met Your Mother, Season 7 Episode 12)
Speaking of emotions, this HIMYM classic has its share as it deals with some heavy themes, yet finds its Christmas voice through Marshall's goofy subplot and Ted's eventual cheering-up of Robin.
11. Yippie Kayak (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Season 3 Episode 10)
Brooklyn Nine-Nine's early seasons always had a mid-season slot for a Christmas episode, and the main character is obsessed with Die Hard, so OF COURSE they were gonna do a Die Hard. And it's spectacular.
10. How Lily Stole Christmas (How I Met Your Mother, Season 2 Episode 11)
This is no genius concept episode or massive tear-jerker - it's just a subjective favorite among conventional Christmas episodes, one that always warms my heart and puts a big ol' smile on my face.
9. Twice Upon a Time (Doctor Who, 2017 Christmas Special)
Peter Capaldi's final episode as the Doctor, released around the holidays, uses the time travel premise to take the action to the most profound setting imaginable - the spontaneous Christmas truce from World War I.
8. A Very Sunny Christmas (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Season 6 Episode 13)
A naked Danny DeVito emerging from inside a couch is bested only by Charlie repeatedly screaming "DID YOU F**K MY MOM, SANTA CLAUS?" to a mall Santa in this chaotic masterclass in dark humor.
7. A Christmas Carol (Doctor Who, 2010 Christmas Special)
A genius Christmas Carol re-telling, where this Scrooge variant is actually taken to confront his past, present and future ghosts by the time-traveling protagonist.
6. False Positive (How I Met Your Mother, Season 6 Episode 12)
This episode always hits hard, with Ted Mosby getting everyone's shit together under the holidays in one of his finest character moments.
5. Noël (The West Wing, Season 2 Episode 10)
This yuletide-set episode deals with PTSD in a gripping, even hard-to-watch manner, yet is ultimately wholesome and befitting of the holidays - Leo's 'a man falls down a hole' speech to Josh is such a dynamite testament to friendship and caring.
4. Comparative Religion (Community, Season 1 Episode 12)
We find out that all the main characters belong to different religions, Jeff stands up for a bullied Abed, there's an entertaining fight, and there's a lot of general hilarity and even more genuine holiday cheer.
3. The Christmas Invasion (Doctor Who, 2005 Christmas Special)
Doctor Who's very first Christmas special is a spectacularly whimsical debut for David Tennant in the lead role.
2. Regional Holiday Music (Community, Season 3 Episode 10)
Every musical number goes unimaginably hard in this festive and hysterical Glee parody.
1. Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas (Community, Season 2 Episode 11)
The very meaning of Christmas in its purest form can be found from this wacky concept episode that is as hilarious and magical as it is layered and heart-melting.
Thank you for reading!
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