B.C. Had Their First Thanksgiving…And A Special Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

So…that’s three posts in less than a week? Gotta be a record!

Anyway, Merry Christmas! I hope you are enjoying the holiday with your loved ones, the ones important and special to you. I wrote this post a few days ago, sitting at my work desk while eating my Pringles (it was part of my lunch) while on break, but I would have been remiss if I didn’t follow up on my Thanksgiving post from a month ago, plus reader and follower Between the Pages asked me if I would be covering the Christmas special. I don’t like disappointing my readers, so to them…yes, of course, I watched it! And yes, of course I wrote about it!

Anyway…

“You Know, We Only Did This Because The Stores Are Closed on Thanksgiving.”

Yeah, and they’re closed on Christmas too (thank goodness!).

B.C.: A Special Christmas is a followup of sorts to 1973’s B.C.: The First Thanksgiving, in that it is a rare find. Originally airing on HBO in 1981, the special features the voices of comedy team Bob and Ray (comedians Bob Elliot and Ray Goulding) as Peter and Wiley.

Peter needs to know what date it is (he finds out it is December 24th), and a rose pops up through the ground.

After Cute Chick thinks Peter is giving it to her, Peter gets an idea, and goes to Wiley. They create a “legend,” perpetuated through the ages and meant to be carried on.

Peter and Wiley go about planning their legend – “the more you give, the richer you feel (and the richer Peter and Wiley get!).” Someone comes around and gives them – Sanitary Claus (Santa for short). There’s trees and rocks, “poor clowns” who have to buy gifts to symbolize someone who doesn’t exist. Their name for the holiday? Xmas!

And just wait till you find out what date they choose for the holiday!

What follows is the schemes of two prehistoric comedians and their get rich quick scheme, music from The Nutcracker, vaguely pornographic-sounding music (yea HBO!), and a holiday special that probably disappeared for a good reason.

In actuality, B.C.: A Special Christmas is actually better than the time they celebrated Thanksgiving. The banter between Peter and Wiley is pretty good, the overall voice acting and animation quality is superior to the Thanksgiving (which had a great theme song going for it, but not much else). Oh, and the dialogue is synced perfectly. There’s that.

The story itself is something that would certainly make sense (and be liked) by B.C. fans, and those who like obscure Christmas specials. The story of Peter and Wiley’s attempt to exploit the others winds up with a positive moral, which is always a plus.