Basic Trope: A special which is about a religious holiday (usually Christmas), but has no religious content.
- Straight: The show Alice, Bob and the Gang is about a group of adult friends who act somewhat childish. In the Christmas Episode, the characters get together at Alice and Bob's house for a Christmas dinner. After their dinner, they decorate a tree, hang stockings, make a gingerbread house, and walk around the neighborhood singing carols. The next morning, they all receive gifts from "Santa Claus", who is actually Charles in a fake beard and Santa suit. There is no mention of Jesus Christ in this or any other episode of the show.
- Exaggerated:
- There are several Christmas and Easter specials (perhaps one of each per season), all of which are devoid of religious content.
- Not even Santa is mentioned (as he was a Christian saint). The holiday is seemingly only about decorations and maybe gifts. They don't even call it Christmas (as it mentions Christ).
- Downplayed:
- Jesus is mentioned offhand exactly once in the Christmas Episode, and the characters do not attend church.
- Jesus is indirectly referenced once.
- Justified:
- The characters are culturally Christian, but non-practicing.
- It's not actually Christmas; they're celebrating it out of season.
- Inverted:
- The Christmas Episode is purely religious, with no mention of the holiday's secular traditions.
- Everyone involved in the episode intend to worship Jesus Christ.
- Subverted: Everyone is at the table for dinner. Bob says that the holiday they are celebrating is not Christmas after all, but "Winterween".
- Double Subverted: Bob was lying.
- Parodied: The characters, who live in the real world, celebrate a Crystal Dragon Jesus equivalent of Christmas.
- Zig Zagged: There are three Christmas episodes in the show's nine-year run. The first is purely religious (an inversion), while the second is purely secular (a straight use). The third just happens to take place on the holiday (an aversion), but shows elements of both takes when Christmas imagery is seen.
- Averted:
- There is some actual religious content in the Christmas Episode.
- There is no episode about Christmas or any other religious holiday.
- Enforced: "We want to do a Christmas Episode, but we want it to appeal to both Christian and non-Christian viewers. Whatever you do, don't have the characters mention Jesus."
- Lampshaded: "Remember when we celebrated Christmas together at Alice and Bob's house? Why didn't anyone mention Jesus Christ's name even once?"
- Invoked: The characters, all of whom are non-Christian, decide to celebrate Christmas together at Alice and Bob's house.
- Exploited: Diane, a teenage girl who was raised Catholic, joins Alice and Bob for Christmas to avoid going to church with her parents.
- Defied: Alice knows that a non-religious "Christmas" gathering is dishonest, so she retells the story of the Nativity.
- Discussed: "I don't think this is what Christmas is about." "What are you talking about, Bob? We all know that Christmas commemorates the birth of Jesus, and I'm still planning on going to church."
- Conversed: "You call that a Christmas special? They didn't even mention Jesus once!"
- Implied: The group's Christmas gathering is mentioned rather than shown. Alice and Bob repeatedly discuss "the year we spent Christmas together" with their friends, but never mention Jesus or church.
- Played For Laughs:
- The characters think that Christmas is a holiday commemorating Santa Claus.
- Every time a character mentions Jesus, Alice says "Santa" over them.
- Played For Drama: Ethel is not invited to Alice and Bob's house for Christmas, because she's a devout Christian and it's a non-religious Christmas gathering.
- Plotted A Good Waste: Jesus Christ is mentioned in a deleted scene.
Merry Santa Clausmas, everyone!
