This is the time of year to sit down with your favorite show's Christmas episodes, but not all of these specials are filled with good cheer. Along with classic specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas, so many beloved shows have offered Christmas episodes over the years. Some embrace the fun of the season, while others just use it as a background setting.
However, certain special Christmas episodes are willing to be darker than the usual yuletide fare. These Christmas episodes can be funny and even festive, but they also have heavier themes, black humor, and even some occasional violence. As dark as they may be, these are still some truly great Christmas episodes.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "A Very Sunny Christmas"
The sitcom that has been pushing boundaries for decades has surprisingly only featured one Christmas episode in It's Always Sunny's 17 seasons. What isn't surprising is that the episode is largely devoid of any real Christmas cheer. Instead, it reminds us why the gang at Paddy's Pub can turn anything into a nightmare.
The special, "A Very Sunny Christmas," deals with Dee and Dennis trying to pull a "Christmas Carol" on Frank while Mac and Charlie confront the dark truths about their childhood Christmases that they buried deep down. It even includes a claymation sequence akin to the holiday children's specials of the past, but with a lot more cursing and graphic violence.
Community - "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas"
Community was a show that never missed an opportunity to do a high-concept episode, and that was especially true of their holiday episodes. The series featured several Christmas episodes in its six-season run, and while a lot of them were fun and irreverent, the season 2 episode "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas" has a more tragic undertone.
While It's Always Sunny featured one inventive claymation sequence, Community committed to an entire episode as the gang indulges Abed's fantasy to help him get past this delusion. The episode has fun with the gimmick, but it also explores the mental health of Abed and the heartbreaking reason he is resorting to this imaginary world for the holidays.
BoJack Horseman - "BoJack Horseman Christmas Special: Sabrina's Christmas Wish"
BoJack Horseman may have been an animated series with talking animals living in Hollywood, but it quickly surprised many by being a dark look at depression. By contrast, "BoJack Horseman Christmas Special: Sabrina's Christmas Wish" is far from the darkest episode of the show, but it certainly isn't jolly and bright.
The episode finds BoJack trying to ignore the holidays and reluctantly joining his roommate, Todd, in watching an old Christmas episode of BoJack's sitcom. There is a lot of fun with the accurate yet exaggerated take on cheesy sitcoms, but it is all infused with BoJack's cynical views, the storyline's surprising darkness, and the show's boundary-pushing humor.
The Bear - "Fishes"
It seems to be a common thread that "comedy" shows that deal with mental health often have the darkest Christmas episodes. The Bear has made a name for itself by delivering some of the most intense episodes of television in recent memory. However, when the show swaps out the mayhem of the restaurant kitchen for the chaos of a family Christmas gathering, it becomes a brilliant exercise in discomfort.
The episode catches viewers off guard by suddenly becoming a star-studded event with surprise guest stars like John Mulaney, Bob Odenkirk, and Sarah Paulson. However, it is Jamie Lee Curtis whose role as the matriarch of the Berzatto family creates the most drama. It will comparatively make most families' Christmas celebrations seem merry and bright.
Black Mirror - "White Christmas"
After delivering one of the most shocking and bleak first seasons in television history, Black Mirror included a Christmas special as part of its second season. "White Christmas" stars Jon Hamm and Rafe Spall as two men working at a remote location over the holidays as they begin to share their own twisted stories of Christmases passed.
As always, this Black Mirror episode delves into the dark side of technology, exploring themes of consciousness and artificial intelligence in ways that will keep you up at night. Also, like many Black Mirror episodes, it features a twist ending that leaves things on such a bleak and disturbing note that it might just ruin your Christmas spirit.