A Plot: Johnny Atkins sells Adam a rare bootleg VHS copy of The Star Wars Holiday Special, knowing that Adam is a huge fan of Star Wars. After viewing the tape, Adam is extremely disappointed, and fears he has grown up and lost his sense of "childlike wonder".
B Plot: Erica and Barry are singing in the chorus for the school's holiday show, with Beverly expecting Erica to sing the solo for the Dreidel song, which is the only Chanukah song included. The chorus doesn't want to sing the song, and neither does Erica (who only does it to please Pops), disappointing Beverly. Beverly insists that Erica write a Chanukah song for the show, causing Barry to try and write a better song.
- Arc Words: Adam bets that his entire school will want to see Howard the Duck (before he actually sees it), except for "the other Adam Goldberg" in 11th Grade, who only goes to a specific cinema that serves wine.
- Everything Is Racist: Principal Ball says that if there is no Channukah song, the show can't include Christmas songs either, causing chaos.
- From Bad to Worse: Pops tries to ease Adam's fears by taking him to see the latest George Lucas film, but it turns out to be the notorious flop Howard the Duck, leading to further disappointment.
- Growing Up Sucks: Adam's plot grapples with losing his "childlike wonder". In the end, Pops manages to reignite it with some encouraging words and by finding redeeming qualities in things, such as the Boba Fett segment in the Holiday Special.
- Happy Birthday to You!: Barry points out how the writers of “Happy Birthday” get paid every time it gets played, which is his motivation to write a hit Chanukah song. Later, Erica’s Chanukah song turns out to be “Happy Birthday” with Chanukah awkwardly added in.
- It's All Junk: Adam decides to throw away his toys and movie posters, now that he’s grown up. It gets tough when he realizes his trash cans are Muppet and Ninja Turtle branded, so he has to get an adult trash can.
- Piss-Take Rap: Barry's new Chanukah song is a historically inaccurate rap about the Maccabees.
- Was It All a Lie?: Erica doesn't react positively when Pops reveals that Beverly's been lying for a decade and that she is the only one that cares about Erica singing a holiday song, though Erica relents when Beverly's honest about how she misses the days when Erica was younger and glad to sing for her.
