History Recap / CreepshowShapeshiftersAnonymous

* BrickJoke: Andy's introductory scene has him attempting to proposition Irena for sex, wanting to make a litter of "kiggens" with the teacher. At the end of the story, as Irena takes Robert to her apartment for sex, Andy lets out a defeated "Aw, man."

When the credo reaches a verse that mentions avoiding "the dread Santa Claus", Robert pauses to ask what exactly that means. As it turns out, Santa Claus (referred to the others as "Kris Kringle") is actually killer of shapeshifters; a Biblical figure who, along with the very existence of therianthropes themselves, was edited out of the Bible by "certain religious leaders" over the years. Scott explains that 5000 years ago, God had granted Bob, one of His disciples, the ability to transform into a wolf-man hybrid, and ordered him to devour sinners. When Bob began growing prideful of his accomplishments, God grew angry and felt the need to put Bob in his place. To that end, God sought out Bob's mortal enemy: Santa Claus. Known back then as "Kristofer", Santa was granted a red suit of indestructible armor by God, who had ordered him to seek out Bob and smite him. After losing to Bob in a one-on-one battle, Kristofer felt that God had betrayed him, so he defected to Lucifer, who gave him a pair of therianthrope killing weapons known as "Satan's Claws". From that moment, Kris Kringle recruited an army of helpers into his service, vowing as long as he lived to rid the world of Bob and his kind.

* AssholeVictim: Robert's victims, including a businessman with ties to organized crime, a defense attorney that specialized in defending child molesters, a punk who robbed a liquor store and beat its owner unconscious, and a mother who ''locked her daughter in a closet without food or water for a week''. There's also the gypsy who curses Robert into a werewolf, as she does it mainly for her percieved grievance with him and her own sick amusement.

* BlackEyesOfEvil: Kringle's eyes are revealed to be pitch black when he appears in person. It could be a side effect to defecting to the Devil.

* FriendToAllChildren: While Kringle hunts down and murders any therainthrope he finds, he leaves their children unharmed and gives them toys as apologies for killing their parents.

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: The world at large still refer to Kringle, the immortal, pure evil, therianthrope-killing monster, as a lovable, jolly elf who gives children toys every Christmas (which is still technically true).

* NoEnding: In spite of the fact that Kringle is stopped, the episode ends before we learn what comes after the people of the world discovering that he's been killed, since his abandoned sleigh is still parked on the roof of the church.

* OurWerebeastsAreDifferent: In addition to werewolves, there are various other were-creatures in existence. Among those featured include a were-cheetah, were-tortoise, were-boar, and at least one unseen character who claims to be a were-squirrel. This is lampshaded by the others, who say that werewolves always get the most publicity. In addition, therianthropes are more-or-less ordinary people who are trying make their way though life, as well as fully understand the unique condition they have been granted. Those who are carnivorous also primarily devour the evil instead of the good. Or in Irena's case, anyone who pisses her off.

* ReallyGetsAround: Andy, the group's resident pervert, is stated to have accidentally showed the other members a video on his phone that turned out to be a sex tape. To save face, Andy tells Robert that the woman in said tape was a college cheerleader majoring in massage therapy, but Phyllis reveals that she was actually an old lady with a walker.

** The church of St. Argento's is a reference to Creator/DarioArgento, the Italian movie director notable for such classics as ''Film/{{Suspiria}}''.

!!Shapeshifters Anonymous

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* CallBack: Just like in [[Recap/CreepshowS1E5TheFinger The Finger]], we have a monster who is named "Bob". The difference is that this Bob is a hero to a group, not just one deluded person.

He has since become convinced that he's a therianthrope, particularly a werewolf. Irena insists that if such is the case, then he belongs with the group. She also calms him down about the fact that he has been blacking out and supposedly killing people, as all his victims were evil and therianthropes have a biological instinct to devour the wicked. She mentions that she herself is a were-cheetah, then introduces him to the other members of the group: Scott Howard (Pete Burris), an ex-Marine and were-tortoise, Andy [=McDurmont=] (Frank Nicotero), an obnoxious pervert and were-boar, Phyllis Allenbee (Candy [=McLellan=]), who's actually just a furry who dresses as a hippopotamus, and "Ryan" (Derek Russo), a silent and mysterious man who comes to every meeting.

Kringle himself then enters, preparing to kill the shapeshifters. When all seems lost, Ryan tells "Kristofer" that he's tired of running, and transforms into Bob, the first therianthrope. Bob and Kringle prepare to fight to the death, only for Phyllis to chop the distracted Kringle's head off. As Bob returns to human form, he rewards the shapeshifters with full control of their transformative abilities, and the ability to remain themselves in animal form. When Phyllis asks to become a hippopotamus, Bob mentions that isn't able to do that. Instead, he invites her to sit on Kringle's lap, since Kringle has plenty of magic. She sits on Kringle's corpse and makes a wish, but nothing happens.

Suddenly, Lil' Yachty appears and offers to take Phyllis home, get her $100 million, then make love to her all night long. Despite all of the madness thrust upon them, Robert and Irena begin a relationship, with the latter suggestively inviting the former to her apartment.

* AmoralAttorney: Robert is mentioned to have eaten one who defended child molesters.
* AnAssKickingChristmas: It doesn't get much better than were-creatures vs. Santa Claus.
* AncientOrderOfProtectors: Kris Kringle and his helpers are an evil variation, having spent 5000 years attempting to rid the world of therianthropes.
* AnimalMotifs: Irena, a were-cheetah, wears a leopard-print blouse. Scott, a were-tortoise, wears a turtleneck sweater.
* AntiClimax: As Bob and Kringle dramatically prepare for a rematch to their last brawl, Phyllis uses the opportunity to abruptly cut Kringle's head off with a scythe.
* ArmorOfInvincibility: God bestowed a suit of impervious armor to Kringle to assist him in smiting Bob. The end of the story sees it rendered useless when he's decapitated.
* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: During his first night as a werewolf, Robert ate the gypsy who cursed him, then ate her dog, then pissed on her hedges to mark his territory.
* AsHimself: Lil' Yachty appears as himself at the end.
* AssholeVictim: Robert's victims, including a businessman with ties to organized crime, a defense attorney that defended child molesters, a punk who robbed a liquor store and beat the owner unconscious, and a mother who ''locked her daughter in a closet for a week without food or water''. There's also the gypsy who curses Robert into a werewolf, as she does it mainly for her own sick amusement.
* BadassTeacher: Irena. Even when she isn't in were-cheetah mode, she mows down a good amount of Santas when they break in. When Robert asks how she's able to use a gun so efficiently, Irena admits that she teaches high school.
* BadSanta: Santa Claus (or Kristofer/"Kris Kringle") is revealed to be a killer of therianthropes who dates back to the Bible. Commanded by God to kill Bob, the first shapeshifter and his mortal enemy, Kristofer fought him in a furious battle. When he lost the battle, Kristofer felt betrayed and defected to Lucifer, who gave him "Satan's Claws", a pair of weapons specially designed to kill shapeshifters. From there, he recruited an army of helpers (mall and street corner Santas) into his service to rid the world of Bob and his kind. As for his reindeer, they were once ordinary "domesticated beasts" that God had blessed with the power of flight so they could pull Kringle's "warship of destruction" throughout the world. He does still deliver toys to children, but he does so out of remorse after slaughtering their therianthrope parents.
* BaitAndSwitch: Phyllis' Christmas wish. While it would seem that she's wishing to be made a hippopotamus, nothing actually happens to her, and she's preparing to take this turn of events in stride. Until Li'l Yachty struts in.
* BerserkButton: For Phyllis, it's telling her that she's not a real therianthrope.
* BigGood: Bob, the progenitor of therianthropes, who was given his transformative abilities by God to devour evil people.
* BlackEyesOfEvil: When he is introduced, Kringle's eyes are pitch black.
* BrickJoke: Andy's introductory scene has him attempting to proposition Irena to have sex with him, wanting to make a litter of "kiggens" with the teacher. At the end of the story, as Robert is taken to Irena's apartment for sex, Andy lets out a defeated "Aw, man."

* CallBack: Just like in [[Recap/CreepshowS1E5TheFinger The Finger]], we have a vicious monster who is named "Bob". The difference is that this Bob is a hero to a group, not just one deluded person.
* TheCameo: Lil' Yachty, who appears out of nowhere to take Phyllis home and make love to her all night long, after getting $100 million at the bank first.
* CarpetOfVirility: When he loses his shirt following his transformation/reversion, Bob is shown to have quite a bit of hair on his chest.
* ChristmasEpisode: This story serves as the series' first one.
* CloudCuckoolander: Phyllis, who likes to dress up as a hippo and dance around like "some demented children's show host."
* CrazyPrepared: The shapeshifters are shown to be highly prepared in the event that Kringle's helpers find them, sounding alarms, activating camera feeds, and even stockpiling weapons to use against said helpers. A transition scene even shows that they've set up explosives in the church above them to deal with any intruders.
* CreepyPhysical: Continuing from the waiting room scene mentioned below, Robert is given an examination in which Dr. Talbot removes a coat button, a piece of a zipper, and 63 cents in change from his rectum. To further highlight the episode's crass tone, ''Creepshow's'' trademark red and blue lighting, which usually appears during a tense or emotional moment, is displayed over the scene.
* {{Cult}}: Santa Claus essentially serves as the figurehead of one, who are dedicated to the complete annihilation of therianthropes.
* DeathByIrony: Kringle's death is a twofer, as he's decapitated (the method of death he's subjected to tens of thousands of shapeshifters) by Phyllis, the sole human of the group who he declared was no threat to him.
* DenserAndWackier: This is definitely one of the most comedic stories so far, with very little serious drama involved. Nearly every character is hammy and/or campy, there's a good amount of crass and raunchy humor, the general plot is downright absurd, and even ''Creepshow's'' signature red-and-blue lighting gets in on the humor, being displayed over inappropriate scenes.
* DisproportionateRetribution: The gypsy who cursed Robert to become a werewolf did so simply because she thought he was being too loud, and without even mentioning what he might have been doing that would be considered loud. Robert guesses that it may have been because he was ''brushing his teeth'' too loudly.
* DramaticIrony: Phyllis, a furry who identifies herself as a hippopotamus, is a member of a group of people who actually, physically transform into animals.
* DeusExMachina: Ryan's transformation potions, which are even discussed as one of these InUniverse, as well as the fact that Ryan himself is actually Bob.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: After being treated with pity and ridicule for being a deluded furry, Phyllis hits a karmic motherlode when she kills Kringle. Not only does she gain the respect of her peers, but the wish she makes on his corpse has Li'l Yachty come in from out of nowhere to take her home, get her $100 million at the bank, and make love to her all night long.
* EvilIsHammy: Kringle has all the markings of a typical cartoon villain, including his penchant for threatening one-liners.
* EvilOldFolks: The gypsy, who was pretending to be senile while cursing Robert with lycanthropy for her own amusement.
* EvilTastesGood: Irena tells Robert that carnivorous therianthropes usually choose to devour the wicked over the good since they find evil tastier. Robert's victims in particular are noted as being a thief, a mobster, a sex offender, an abusive mother, and a defense attorney who defended child molesters.
* ExtremeOmnivore: Andy, who states that he's rooted through garbage and eaten aluminum cans while transformed.

* FaceHeelTurn: Kringle was initially appointed by God to seek out Bob and kill him. After losing a one-on-one battle against Bob, Kringle believed that God betrayed him and he defected to Lucifer, who gave him his Satan's Claws and turned him into the therianthrope hunter he is today.
* FauxHorrific: To display how comical this episode is over the rest of the series, ''Creepshow's'' trademark red-and-blue lighting, which is usually reserved for a tense or dramatic moment, is displayed over the harrowing scene of... Robert getting a rectal exam at the doctor's office.
* FlatCharacter: Phyllis' entire character arc consists of the fact that she's both a slightly-deluded furry and the sole human among a group of genuine shapeshifters, as well as the fact that the others only let her stay with them because they pity her. In spite of this, she's the person who ultimately saves the day.
* ForeShadowing: When Irena takes Robert's box of baked goods, she savagely bites into a Santa cookie, hinting of the disdain that all therianthropes have for Kris Kringle.
* FormulaBreakingEpisode: This is the first episode in the series to air as one, long continuous story.
* ForTheEvulz: While she supposedly had a valid reason to yell at Robert for being loud, the gypsy cursed him into a werewolf largely for her amusement.

* FullBoarAction: Andy, when transformed, is seen mauling a helper to death with his tusks.
* GainaxEnding: While it isn't the actual end of the story, Lil' Yachty's cameo, where he takes Phyllis home and vows to make love to her all night long, comes ''completely'' out of nowhere and was given no foreshadowing at all.
* GypsyCurse: How Robert is turned into a werewolf.
* HereditaryCurse: Scott says that he has been a therianthrope since he was born, having inherited a recessive gene from his mother.
* HighOnCatnip: During the testing scene, Irena strokes Robert's palm with catnip to see how he reacts. Being a were-cheetah, she then starts rubbing it on her face in ecstasy. Andy is forced to take it away from her, complaining that she'll play with it all day if given the chance.
* HotTeacher: Irena, who openly flirts with Robert. She manages to stay sexy when she transforms.
* KubrickStare: The mall Santas that Robert comes across each give him one.
* LargeHam: Andy. Being a wereboar, he fits the trope both literally and figuratively.
* LethalJokeCharacter: Phyllis, the one-note gag character who's actually a furry, is the one to ultimately save the day in the end.
* LetsGetDangerous: Scott reveals that the box of testing equipment holds a collection of pistols under its contents. The therianthropes use these pistols to rain death upon the first wave of Santas. When they run out of ammo, they use Ryan's potions to transform and tear apart the second wave.
* LostCommonKnowledge: Santa Claus and therianthropes are stated to have their origins in the Bible. The tales describing their origins, such as the Book of Bob, have been edited out of the Bible many years earlier by various religious leaders.
* MallSanta: Thousands of them act as Santa's "Army of Redemption". Robert encounters three of them over the course of the story. The first in the doctor's office waiting room, the second in the hall of his apartment building, and the third on a street corner, all of them giving him a menacing KubrickStare. In addition, another one is seen during a news report on the rise in killings. The one on the street corner is also implied to have informed his fellow mall Santas and followed Robert to the church.
* MentorArchetype: Irena, the SA chapter president, and Scott, the oldest of the group (barring Ryan), teach Robert about the history of the group, what it's like to live as a shapeshifter, their historical feud with Kris Kringle, and even how to work a pistol.
* MickeyMousing: Every step Kringle makes is punctuated by the sound of dramatic thumps mixed with jingle bells.
* NaiveNewcomer: Robert, the newest member of Shapeshifters Anonymous, is left completely in the dark to the fact that he's even a full-fledged therianthrope, and has no idea that his kind are the mortal enemy of Santa Claus. As such, he's usually the only character who questions the ludicrous plot of the episode.
* NeverMyFault: Kringle, after losing his battle with Bob, blamed God for betraying him instead of blaming himself.
* NoEnding: In spite of the fact that Kringle is stopped, the episode ends before we learn what comes after the people of the world discovering that he's been killed.
* OffWithHisHead: Irena states that other than old age, this is the only way that a therianthrope can die. Kringle himself is killed this way by Phyllis.
* OnlySaneMan: Robert is the only character who brings up any sort of logical question or concern with the entire episode's insane premise, and even then he doesn't get all the answers he seeks.
* OurWerebeastsAreDifferent: In addition to werewolves, there are various other were-creatures in existence. Among those featured include were-cheetahs, were-tortoises, and were-boars. This is lampshaded by the others, who say that werewolves get the most publicity. In addition, therianthropes are more-or-less ordinary people who are trying to understand the unique condition they have been granted, and primarily devour the evil instead of the good. Or in Irena's case, anyone who pisses her off.
* PluckyComicRelief: Andy and Phyllis.
* {{Pride}}: The reason God became angry with Bob was that the latter started getting prideful with his killings.
* ReallyGetsAround: Andy, the group's resident pervert, once accidentally showed the other members a video on his phone that turned out to be a sex tape. To save face, Andy tells new member Robert that the woman in said tape was a college cheerleader majoring in massage therapy, but Phyllis reveals that she was actually an old lady with a walker.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Both Kringle and Bob are over 5000 years old, having presumably been granted immortality by God as part of the blessings they received from Him.
* TheReveal: Ryan is actually Bob, the very first therianthrope, having undergone plastic surgery to disguise his face. His human face, anyway.
* RuggedScar: Scott has a large scar across his neck, courtesy of Kringle. He's had the scar ever since he was 7 years old, and he got it right after Kringle butchered his parents... and then proceeded to give him a train set.
** Once Ryan/Bob's identity is revealed, he is shown to have several scars along his torso, no doubt from his previous battle with Kringle.
* SassyBlackWoman: Phyllis.
* ScatterbrainedSenior: Fitting for the comedic approach of the story, the gypsy who curses Robert is portrayed as a senile old lady with an annoying dog rather than a menacing mystic. Her voice, when heard in Robert's mind, actually reveals that her senility was an act and she knew full well what she was doing.

** The gypsy's dog is named Maleva, which was the name of the gypsy in ''[[Film/TheWolfMan1941 The Wolf Man]]''. In addition, the doctor who examines Robert is named Dr. Talbot, named after the main character in said film.
** The password Robert attempts to use to get into the SA meeting is "[[Creator/JohnLandis Landis]]".
** Scott Howard shares the name of the protagonist of ''Film/TeenWolf''.
** Some of Robert's noted victims are named [[Film/FrankensteinsBloodyTerror Waldemar Daminski]], [[Film/IWasATeenageWerewolf Tony Rivers]], and [[Film/GingerSnaps Ginger Fitzgerald]].
** Appropriately enough, Irena shares the name of the protagonist of ''Film/CatPeople''.

** Near the end, Phyllis refers to Bob as [[Film/TheWolfMan1941 "Lon Chaney"]].
* {{Sleepwalking}}: Robert and Dr. Talbot believe this to be the cause of why the former blacks out. Dr. Talbot relates that he once had a patient who, while sleepwalking, logged onto an online casino and gambled away $78,000. The patient didn't actually come to him for his sleepwalking, but to fix his broken nose after his wife found out.
* SlidingScaleOfSillinessVersusSeriousness: The entire episode's premise, with shapeshifters and Santa Claus being mortal enemies going back to the Bible who try to kill each other whenever they meet, would sound completely ridiculous on paper. Yet despite this, the characters treat the episode's ludicrous premise completely seriously. The exception is Robert, whose status as the newest member means he's the only person who questions ''anything''.
* TheSocialDarwinist: Kringle has that mentality where only the strongest are fit to serve him, as seen when he decapitates a wounded helper who begs for his help.
* SociallyAwkwardHero: Robert, early in the episode, is presented as a nervous, stuttering, and squirrely man. He manages to man up in time for the climatic battle, but then goes back to being awkward after the battle is won.
* ToiletHumor: To highlight this episode's more goofy and comedic tone, Robert first became aware of his condition after finding little white stones and bits of fabric in his stool. Being told by Dr. Talbot to present a sample at his office, Robert is seen in the waiting room holding a plastic container visibly containing his stool, ''in full view of a little kid''. This also leads to the CreepyPhysical mentioned above.
* TokenHuman: Phyllis is the only member of Shapeshifters Anonymous who is fully human, merely being a furry who dresses as a hippopotamus. Despite this, she never misses a meeting, so the others let her stay with the group and treat her as one of their own... mostly out of pity.
* ToBeContinuedRightNow: When Kringle's helpers reach the church, we get a brief comic interlude of them fighting off the shapeshifters' defenses, and then cutting right back to the shapeshifters as they were. The reason for this framing is that the episode was initially supposed to be a two-parter, but it was ultimately made into a single 44-minute episode at the last minute.
* TrueCompanions: The shapeshifters have formed a tight-knit group over the course of their meetings. They even eagerly welcome Robert to their ranks when he comes to them for help.
* VanHelsingHateCrimes: Kris Kringle spends every December rallying his "Army of Redemption" to eradicate all therianthropes from the face of the Earth, regardless of whether they're good or evil.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Despite being a remorseless slaughterer of shapeshifters, Santa Claus is still treated as "the mythical, jolly character loved by millions" that most fictional media depicts him as.
* VomitIndiscretionShot: When he wakes up after his first night as a werewolf, Robert promptly vomits the gypsy's necklace and her dog's collar in the sink.
* VoiceOfTheLegion: Kringle has one, a possible side effect of his allegiance with the Devil.
* WaxingLyrical: "Here Comes Santa Claus" and "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" both have their lyrics spoken as grave warnings of what's to come.
* WorldOfJerkass: It's established that there is a large amount of sinful or otherwise evil people in the world, as Robert's victims clearly show. This is a good thing for therianthropes, though, as they have a sacred mission to devour sinners, and often make the world a slightly better place with every victim they eat.
* ZergRush: The mall Santas that bombard the church in the climactic battle engage in this.

* TurtlePower: When transformed, Scott uses his tortoise strength and durability to pummel and crush any helpers who attack him.