December in the 80's was a magical time of year to be a kid. Not only did we get all the fantastic toys for Christmas, but every year, throughout the holiday season, the television would segue from regularly scheduled programing to air animated holiday specials. They'd come on just late enough that it could be a family event, but early enough that we'd get to enjoy it just before bedtime.
Each half hour block was special. Perfectly crafted with just the right number of advertisements to remind us of all the toys on store shelves, the treats to be had from local restaurants and grocery stores, and all other manners of consumption in between. But at the heart of it was that cartoon which would come out of hiding just once a year, fill your eyes with wonder, bringing smiles, laughter, action, adventure, drama, but at the root of it, a classic holiday message of peace, giving, love, and joy.
It's become my own personal tradition each year to pull a holiday special off the DVD shelf each day to enjoy. It's a ritual which not only has become my way of counting down the twenty-four days of December leading up to my favorite holiday, but my way of reminding myself that no matter what's happening in the world, my day-to-day grind of work, life, health, trials, and tribulations, that for a moment, all of that can be put a side, and I can simply become a kid again, even if it's just at heart.
While I wish I could share the actual special with all of you, be it by inviting you all to my home to join me in front of the fireplace with a bowl of popcorn, sadly, that's just not feasible. However, between sites such as Youtube, Arhcive.org, Dailymotion, and Vimeo, you can probably find them to watch. Of course, for those of you so bold, you could also pick them up on DVD yourself, something I would highly recommend. If not for yourself, for your children.
The Smurfs are once again busy getting into the holiday spirit by stringing up decorations and putting ornaments on their tree while singing a Christmas variant of their theme song. Wild and Chitter peek out from behind a barrel and watch the Smurflings pass by him, eager to hang up some decorations. He is confused at first, but then decides to join in the fun. Brainy has Wild string up some tinsel along the Smurf houses, but he ends up using it to swing around until he lands out of control into a snow-Smurf that Baby and Painter were working on. Nat asks Wild if he's in the village to help them decorate while he rings a Christmas bell. Wild takes it and wears it on his head as a hat. Brainy tells Nat that Wild wouldn't know a bell from a bonnet as he takes it away from him. He then climbs up through the tree to meet Smurfette as she asks him the same question that Nat asked, but he suddenly slips back down and knocks down some ball ornaments, which makes Vanity get all upset.
Papa Smurf comes along to tell his little Smurfs that they shouldn't expect Wild to already know what Christmas is all about because this is his first Christmas. Smurfette then takes him by the hand to show him what Christmas is about: singing, dancing, and lots of presents, some of which Jokey is in the process of wrapping. He takes a bit of Jokey's Christmas ribbon and wraps Brainy up in it. Greedy shows up with a tray of smurfberry candy canes and he eats one while the rest get knocked off the tray by Clumsy and fall onto the branches of the Christmas tree. Papa Smurf then adds that there's a special spirit of giving and sharing that comes around Christmastime, and it's not just for Smurfs. He takes one of the wrapped gifts which he says is for Enchanter Homnibus and tells the other Smurfs that when he returns, they can all expect gifts with each other. Brainy asks why they couldn't open their presents now, and Papa Smurf answers that Grandpa Smurf and Sassette haven't yet returned, and that he is giving his gift to her a little early.
At that moment, those two Smurfs are witnessing a Christmas celebration going on in a human village with minstrels playing, jugglers juggling, and marketers selling gifts and food. Sassette is amazed by all the toys the humans get to play with, and asks Grandpa Smurf if she could get a closer look; he allows her to do so as long as she is careful not to let herself be seen. As they cross the street, Sassette suddenly notices a thief stealing money from a rich customer. The victim notices that his money is gone while the thief makes a run for it, but then Grandpa throws the apple at him, knocking the money bag out of his hand. The victim spots him as he disappears into the crowd without it.
Meanwhile, a puppetmaker, Gustav, is frustrated that nobody is buying his toys and so packs up his gear and starts moving his wagon down the street. Just then, a boy named Hans stops him, who is interested in his puppets. Pleased with this news, Gustav offers one of the toys to him as a gift. But then Hans' father calls him, scolding him for consorting with poor people and throwing away the toy that was given to him, saying that he will buy him finer toys than that. Gustav watches sadly, as do Sassette and Grandpa Smurf, as the carriage that Hans and his father ride off in crushes his toy underneath its wheels.
Sassette and Grandpa Smurf follow Gustav as he makes his way home to meet with the doctor who is watching over his wife Elise. He gives him grave news, telling him that her spirit is very weak. He says it is possible that the Christmas holiday will brighten her mood, but the rest of his words trail off, indicating that this holiday may be her last. After the doctor leaves, Gustav shows her the puppet he made for her. She smiles as it reminds her of a Christmas long ago, with children laughing and people singing. But her smile fades when she realizes the condition she is in, and though Gustav tries to encourage her with tales of "Christmas elves" making wishes comes true, she says it will take more than that to make it a merry Christmas. As he leaves her to rest, wishing he could brighten her spirits somehow, Sassette asks Grandpa Smurf if there's something they can do to help them. He believes that they can, and they quickly depart before Gustav notices them.
Sassette and Grandpa Smurf return to the village to get help from the other Smurfs, but they are too busy with their own Christmas preparations to bother with other things. Fortunately, Wild comes along to offer whatever help he can, bringing along a sled pulled by Chitter so the two Smurfs can deliver their sacks of presents to the humans. Papa Smurf arrives a little later on to find out that they have gone off to the human village to help a sick elderly couple. Brainy wonders why they would spend Christmas doing that, and Papa Smurf reminds them that Christmas is truly all about helping those who are less fortunate. The Smurfs in the village realize how selfish and preoccupied they became with preparing for their own Christmas and soon turn to making preparations for the elderly couple's Christmas. Riding a sled pulled by Puppy, the Smurfs catch up to Grandpa, Sassette, and Wild just as they are getting slowed down by a heavy blizzard.
That night, Elise calls Gustav to bed as he puts out the fire in his hearth, hoping that tomorrow morning she will be stronger. After the lights dim in their house as well as in all others, the thief seen earlier comes out of hiding to play his trade once again on the rich folks going home with their gold. The Smurfs arrive at the human village that they must pass through in order to get to the elderly couple's house. Papa Smurf has Puppy take them through an alley so that they won't be seen. At the same time, however, Hans' father decides to take it as a shortcut home, carrying gifts for his son. The thief watches him as he passes by, then sneaks up to him and grabs his bag of gold. Hans' father, noticing that his bag is gone, calls out, "Stop, thief", which is heard by the Smurfs as they are also passing through. They knock him and his pile of gifts over, one of which knocks Brainy and Hefty off the sled. Hefty spots the thief and gives chase after him while Brainy finds himself contending with a vicious rat. Hefty then comes to his rescue by tying its tail to a hook and calling for his friend to jump down, getting out of the alley as the rat is kept from chasing after them.
Smurfs in front of a Christmas tree The Smurfs arrive at the elderly couple's house only to find out that they have gone to bed, so Papa Smurf says they will leave them a Christmas present for morning. Soon the Smurfs are setting up their Christmas tree and decorations inside the couple's house, with Painter painting pictures and Wild and Smurfette stringing up tinsel and wreaths on the rafters. Papa Smurf is so pleased with their efforts that he tells them they should hurry home before the couple awakes. However, Clumsy causes a little accident that makes some noise, waking up Gustav to see "elves" running around inside his house. Elise doesn't believe him until he brings her out of the bedroom to see for herself. She is so amazed that these "elves" have gone through so much trouble even with hanging a star on their Christmas tree that they can't believe it. Sassette says that he must believe, and so the Smurfs sing a song about Christmas being a time for sharing and caring. Elise feels her spirit getting stronger and says to Gustav that maybe Christmas wishes do come true.
Outside, Hefty and Brainy catch up to the thief. They sneak in and watch him count up the money he has stolen. Brainy asks Hefty what they are going to do now, and he says he will think of something. Then they hear Grandpa Smurf singing the song from the elderly couple's house, which Brainy nearly blurts out before Hefty muffles him, but the thief is soon distracted by voices and attempts to find out who's there. Brainy and Hefty try to make a run for it, but they bump into a barrel and cause more rattling which startles the thief even more. Then suddenly Hefty's shadow appears on the wall, which makes the thief think he's being visited by an evil spirit. Hefty plays along with this idea, saying that he's not evil but the thief is. Brainy joins him as his shadow is also cast on the wall to further shame the thief for his evil acts upon people during Christmas. As the Smurfs' song to the elderly couple plays again, the thief begins to have second thoughts about what he's done with the stolen gold.
Meanwhile, Hans' father brings guards with him to track down the thief and find that his money bag is now at Gustav's doorstep. Inside the house, he gives Sassette one of his puppets as a gift to thank the Smurfs for the Christmas they have given him and Elise. But a door knock later, that Christmas almost comes to ruin as Hans' father sees the well-decorated house that he assumes came from the stolen gold and has Gustav arrested. Elise tries to come to his defense by saying that it was elves that decorated their house, but neither Hans' father nor the guards believe her. Papa Smurf, now hiding along with the other Smurfs, says they will have to show themselves in order to prove Gustav's innocence. Instead, the thief shows up and confesses that he was the one who stole the gold as he returns it to its rightful owner. As the guards apprehend him, the Smurfs leave the house in preparation for returning home to the Smurf Village. While Hans' mother keeps Elise company, wondering how she managed to decorate her house so well, his father decides that he will not press charges against the thief since he got his gold back.
Smurfs riding a sled Upon their return to the village, Papa Smurf and Grandpa Smurf notice that Wild is having fun playing with Sassette's new toy puppet, with Papa Smurf saying that this will be one Christmas Wild will never forget. Brainy decides it is time to share his gifts to his fellow Smurfs, which happen to be a few dozen leftover copies of his Yuletide Quotations -- something that the other Smurfs respond to by pelting him with snowballs.
I don't know about this one. The fact that the crook gets away with no punishment for his crime, just because he gave the gold back is a commendable act of kindness, but does it really teach the children a moral lesson?
Wanting to get a little more holiday joy, I pulled out a couple more DVD's and enjoyed some random Christmas themed episodes. Today's picks were:
- Bah-Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas
- A Johnny Bravo Christmas
- The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, the 1985 Rankin / Bass classic
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