Over its 33 seasons, The Simpsons has aired 20 Christmas episodes ranging from beloved, classic outings to critically-disliked later season efforts. Since its inception, The Simpsons has offered viewers an anarchic subversion of traditional family sitcoms. As such, it may come as a surprise to some readers to learn that the very first episode of The Simpsons was a Christmas special, establishing one of the show's most popular trends right from the outset.
However, the first Simpsons Christmas special was no saccharine, sentimental affair. Instead, season 1’s “Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire” is as subversive and cynical as many of the show’s early episodes, and darker than a lot of more recent outings from the series. Before becoming the zanier, cartoon-y hit fans know and love, The Simpsons had plenty of mean-spirited moments as proven by a rewatch of the pilot.
That said, even despite this tonal shift, the style of The Simpsons was already set in stone by “Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire.” The first episode of the sitcom balances sentimental moments of sweetness with the inventive comedy that made Golden Age Simpsons episodes so critically acclaimed, and although the outing may not feature as many jokes as later episodes, the comedy still holds up surprisingly well. However, it has been over thirty years and over thirty seasons since the pilot aired, so naturally there has been an evolution in The Simpsons' Christmas episodes. Here's how The Simpsons’ 20 Christmas episodes compare to each other, and, ultimately, which ones are the best of the bunch.
20. “Bobby, It’s Cold Outside” (Season 31, Episode 10)
Sideshow Bob might be a beloved ing character, and Kelsey Gramer’s erudite villain has proven he can anchor a classic outing of The Simpsons. However, the attempted murderer is ill-suited to a Yuletide setting, and unfortunately, “Bobby, It’s Cold Outside” (The Simpsons season 31, episode 10) proves this point. While The Simpsons’ best horror parody "Cape Feare," (The Simpsons season 5, episode 2) showed that Bob was a stellar antagonist for darker episodes of the show, this Christmas special softens the character into a more forgiving figure and it is a predictable twist that proves too saccharine for the usually sharper series.
19. “Tis The 30th Season” (Season 30, Episode 10)
Strangely, “Tis The 30th Season” (The Simpsons season 30, episode 10) is the second of two Simpsons Christmas episodes that pit Marge against Gil, the Death of a Salesman-inspired sad sack who is many fan’s favorite ing Springfield citizen. Unfortunately, Marge’s beef with Gil is not central to the story of this forgettable outing, which tells the tale of the titular family heading to Florida for Christmas after a disastrous Black Friday. Anyone expecting a theme park episode as funny as The Simpsons' classic Westworld parody will be disappointed by this middling effort.
18. “White Christmas Blues” (Season 25, Episode 8)
There is not a lot to hate about White Christmas Blues” (The Simpsons season 25, episode 8), although none of the episode’s stories ever gel into an effective whole. The crux of the plot centers around the Simpsons turning their home into a B+B to make some extra cash around the holidays, but not much comedic gold is mined from this potentially interesting premise. Instead, “White Christmas Blues” turns out to be a late-season dud from The Simpsons and a missed opportunity to skewer the then-relevant Air B+B craze.
17. “The Nightmare After Krustmas” (Season 28, Episode 10)
To be fair to “The Nightmare After Krustmas” (The Simpsons season 28, episode 10), it is not as disliked as Frozen and Bing Crosby, cramming Christmas institutions both old and new into its brief runtime.
16. “I Won’t Be Home For Christmas” (Season 26, Episode 9)
“I Won’t Be Home For Christmas”(The Simpsons season 26, episode 9) is a bleak Simpsons Christmas episode and one that is a touch too short on laughs to pull off its dark tone. The idea of Homer starring in anThe Simpsons’ mean-spirited low point, this episode overplays the darkness and fails to find the humor in this premise. The finished episode is too sad for its own good, but not unwatchable.
15. “Gone Boy” (Season 29, Episode 9)
“Gone Boy” (The Simpsons season 29, episode 9) makes the surprising choice to parody Gone Girl, and ends up being a surprisingly fun spoof as the story of Bart’s mysterious disappearance gradually unravels. The episode loses points for being a festive Simpsons episode that barely focuses on the holiday and fails to take advantage of its dramatic premise (Bart’s not just missing, he’s missing at Christmas). Nonetheless, “Gone Boy” is a strong, fun outing for a later season Simpsons episode.
14. “Kill Gil, Volumes I & II” (Season 18, Episode 9)
The funniest thing in Kill Gil, Volumes I & II” (The Simpsons season 18, episode 9) is the Grumple, a surreal parody of The Grinch That Stole Christmas that gets into a long-lasting beef with Homer. Outside of this running gag, this episode is a solid piece of cringe comedy wherein Marge can’t bring herself to kick out lovable loser Gil despite him proving an imposition on the eponymous family. It’s a little overstuffed, resulting in an absurdly abrupt ending, but "Kill Gil, Volumes I & II” still has the playful, often surreal sense of humor that marks some mid-season Simpsons episodes out as standouts.
13. “Tis The Fifteenth Season” (Season 15, Episode 7)
One of the stronger later Simpsons Christmas outings, "Tis The Fifteenth Season” (The Simpsons season 15, episode 7) saw the show parody A Christmas Carol and the Dr. Seuss classic without ever focusing on one over the other.
12. “The Way Of The Dog” (Season 31, Episode 22)
Season 31’s finale is one of many Simpsons Christmas episodes that aired at an odd time, arriving in mid-May. However, the tale of how the Simpsons came to own their beloved family dog Santa’s Little Helper is still firmly a Christmas episode and a surprisingly sweet one at that. Flashing back to earlier outings is always a risky proposition for a long-running show and can backfire, as seen when The Simpsons season 33 retconned a beloved episode. However, in this instance, the risk paid off with a sweet, rewarding season finale.
11. “She Of Little Faith” (Season 13, Episode 6)
The question of Lisa’s religion is one that few viewers expected The Simpsons to address, but “She Of Little Faith” (The Simpsons season 13, episode 6) did make for one of the show’s more moving, understated festive episodes. When Bart’s space-bound hamster accidentally burns down the local church through a convoluted opening act, Mr. Burns opens his deep pockets and refurbishes the town institution at a high cost. The new gaudy megachurch is a monument to Burns rather than god and puts Lisa off religion entirely until she eventually discovers Buddhism with the help of guest star Richard Gere. While Gere is a game Simpsons celebrity guest star, “She Of Little Faith”’s thoughtful satire of religion mainly falls a little short because it is far from the most fun festive outing of the series.
