History Main / OverTheTopChristmasDecorations

* There's a WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse short where Mickey and Mortimer competed against each other about Christmas decorations -- it got to the point that it put out all of the city lights and destroyed their houses. They compromised only when a signboard behind them displayed "Peace on Earth", and mediated by sharing gifts... which turned out to be boxing gloves designed to hit the recipient.

[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
* While not shown, one strip of ''Helpdesk'' had one of the technicians tell a teammate that every year his parents make the nativity scene they set up in the yard more elaborate. The descriptions ultimately end with "when they added Herod slaying the male children of Israel, the neighbors called the cops".
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* The ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' ChristmasEpisode begins with the lighting of the decorations at Kim's house, played up with dramatic donning of protective goggles and flipping a BigElectricSwitch as if they're activating some mad-science experiment. The lights are so overwhelming that Ron is temporarily blinded as he arrives, and the Tweebs mention that they rerouted the Middleton power grid so they wouldn't [[BigBlackout overload it]] like they did last time.

* In ''Film/{{Elf}}'', Buddy was raised by elves at the North Pole, so over-the-top is the only way he knows to decorate for Christmas. He decorates the toy department at Gimbels department store so well that his supervisor thinks it's the work of a ringer from corporate headquarters, trying to undermine his job. Buddy also decorates Walter's apartment, destroying some of Walter's property in the process to use the pieces as decorations. He gets a Christmas tree (so big it barely fits into the apartment) by cutting one down from a public park--which, as the movie reminds the audience, is a felony.

* In ''Film/{{Elf}}'', Buddy was raised by elves at the North Pole, so over-the-top is the only way he knows to decorate for Christmas. He decorates the toy department at Gimbels department store so well that his supervisor thinks it's the work of a spy from corporate headquarters, trying to undermine his job. Buddy also decorates Walter's apartment, destroying some of Walter's property in the process to use the pieces as decorations. He gets a Christmas tree (so big it barely fits into the apartment) by cutting one down from a public park--which, as the movie reminds the audience, is a felony.

* In ''Film/{{Elf}}'', Buddy was raised by elves at the North Pole, so over-the-top is the only way he knows to decorate for Christmas. He decorates the toy section at Gimbel's department store so well that the supervisor thinks it's the work of a spy from corporate headquarters, trying to undermine his job. Buddy also decorates Walter's apartment, destroying some of Walter's property in the process to use the pieces as decorations. He gets a Christmas tree (so big it barely fits into the apartment) by cutting one down from a public park--which, as the movie reminds the audience, is a felony.

* ''WesternAnimation/ACharlieBrownChristmas'': Snoopy gives his doghouse the decorative overkill treatment and wins first prize in the local newspaper's Christmas decoration contest.
* The Whos at the beginning of ''WesternAnimation/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas'' even had a song about it:
-->''"Trim every blesséd needle on the blesséd Christmas tree."''
-->''"Christmas come tomorrow. Trim you, trim me!"''

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/overthetop_xmas_dec_6697.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Just imagine having to untangle all those cords.]]

* On ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'', Timmy's parents decorate the whole house, inner and outer, for the holiday, even changing paint on the walls.

[[folder:Film -- Animated]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]

* The live-action movie of ''Film/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas'' turned the scene from the animated film UpToEleven by giving the Whos a device like a ''belt-fed machine gun'' to shoot decorations at their houses.

* In ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'', Lily and Marshall are big fans of Christmas and their and Ted's apartment is overblown with lights and other dreamy winter wonderland decorations. It's taken UpToEleven when Lily gets angry with Ted and takes all the stuff to her tiny crappy apartment.

* PlayedForDrama in the ''Series/{{Haven}}'' episode "Silent Night," an OutOfHoliday ChristmasInJuly episode. A little girl's [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividual Trouble]] has made everyone (except [[AntiMagic Audrey]]) think it's Christmas, though it's July. The Trouble is slowly turning Haven into a holiday-themed snow globe and every time Audrey turns around, there's fewer Haven residents and more Christmas decorations. One WhamShot has her call Haven PD for backup, only for Nathan to inform her they're the only two officers in town. When he hangs up, the wide shot reveals him sitting alone, absolutely surrounded by Santa and snowmen lawn ornaments and Christmas lights.

* ABC has a light-decorating competition series that airs during the season and shows off real-life examples called ''The Great Christmas Light Fight''.

* ''Literature/{{Clue}}'': Variant in book 5 of the book series - the lights and decorations on Mr. Boddy's house don't ''look'' too extravagant, but then it turns out he spent a million dollars on the Christmas tree ornaments.

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* In ''Film/{{Elf}}'', Buddy was raised by elves at the North Pole, so over-the-top is the only way he knows to decorate for Christmas. He decorates the toy section at Gimbel's department store so well that the supervisor thinks it's the work of a spy from corporate headquarters, trying to undermine his job. Buddy also decorates Walter's apartment, destroying some of Walter's property in the process, to use the pieces as decorations. He gets a Christmas tree (so big it barely fits into the apartment) by cutting one down from a public park--which, as the movie reminds the audience, is a felony.

This is a staple of most {{Christmas episode}}s, {{Christmas special}}s and Christmas movies. It's very often PlayedForLaughs on {{sitcom}}s and in WesternAnimation. In {{work com}}s, it's not uncommon for characters to take a similar approach to adorning their office or cubicle come the holidays.