Review: DuckTales “How Santa Stole Christmas!”

Overview

Scrooge begrudgingly teams up with that last person who would ever come to him for help… Santa Claus (Hugh Bonneville) who needs help in saving Christmas.

Our Take

In a world where animal people and animals technically co-exist, It only makes sense that Santa’s interpretation within the Ducktales Universe would be an eloquently-spoken Polar Bear who unlike Della’s triplet sons, Webby and Della are both just as blindly Anti-Santa as Scrooge. I especially love the small touches such as the changing of the opening and end-credits music into a holiday-themed melody with soothing Bing Crosby-esque vocals.

In a series of unraveling flashbacks that feel almost like an origin story for Santa within the Ducktales Universe, the writers have cleverly utilized their attention to detail when it comes to anything synonymous with Christmas traditions, objects, and clever word-play that are masterfully handled in such a way that they make total sense, while concurrently delving into the falling out that became the catalyst for Scrooge’s seething contempt for Santa and how that fits into the present-day narrative.

Overall, this felt like a fascinating debate between the practical vs the sentimental when it comes to gift-giving. Scrooge’s philosophy seems very logical, solution-oriented, and dare I say, well-intentioned, but doesn’t understand how something sentimental without expecting anything back can have equal value. True, basic survival is key, but feeling good is what makes humanity as a whole want to go on with their lives in the first place. And nowhere is that properly conveyed than this decently written holiday special that knows how to tug at the heartstrings in unexpected ways.