Will Vinton's Claymation Christmas Celebration is a Stop Motion animated Christmas Special produced and directed by Will Vinton and originally broadcast on CBS on December 21, 1987. The special featured stop motion clay animation and was produced and directed by Will Vinton. The special debuted alongside A Garfield Christmas and the two continued to be aired back to back in subsequent years.
Centered in London's Christmas Square, anthropomorphic dinosaurs Rex the tyrannosaurus and Herb the styracosaurus act as the hosts of several vignettes, providing trivia and history on the songs and traditions they represent. All the while, they try to figure out the meaning of "wassail" from the carol, "Here We Come A-Wassailing."
- We Three Kings: Sung by The Three Wise Men, with their anachronistic, bebopping camels providing the chorus.
- Carol of the Bells: Performed at Notre Dame Cathedral by an orchestra of living bells, conducted by Quasimodo.
- O Christmas Tree: A series of little scenes taking place within Christmas tree ornaments.
- Angels We Have Heard On High: A pair of walruses do an ice ballet to this carol, to the consternation of some local penguins.
- Joy to the World: A soul-jazz hybrid rendition of this carol, set to a series of colorful scenes.
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: Performed by the California Raisins.
Followed by the California Raisins' own TV special Meet The Raisins! in 1988, while Will Vinton would also produce Halloween and Easter specials in the early 1990s, and the three holiday specials have been released together on DVD. Will Vinton Studios also animated the 1997 NBC TV Christmas special The Online Adventures of Ozzie the Elf.
This Christmas Special has examples of
- Animate Inanimate Object: "Carol of the Bells" is performed by anthropomorphic bells striking themselves with hammers. One goofy-looking bell keeps missing his cue, then loses his hammer, much to the annoyance of Quasimodo, the conductor.
- Big Eater: Herb is always eating something. He gets a Balloon Belly at the end of the special.
- Brick Joke: In the beginning, Rex tells Herb that there are no carols about snacks. At the end, after learning that to "wassail" is to go around singing carols and receiving treats and cordials, Herb tells Rex that there are songs about snacks.
- Cartoon Conductor: Quasimodo, the conductor of the anthropomorphic bells. At the end of the piece, to get the proper note from the bell that lost his hammer, Quasimodo hits the bell with a projectile from his slingshot.
- Christmas Carolers: They keep stopping by, singing the wrong renditions of "Here We Come A-Wassailing." First waffle-vending dogs singing "Here We Come A-Waffling," then geese singing "Here We Come A-Waddling," then pigs singing "Here We Come A-Wallowing."
- Christmas Special
- Claymation: It's right there in the title.
- Disapproving Look: Whenever the goofy-looking bell misses his cue, Quasimodo glances over to glare at him.
- Epic Tracking Shot: "O Christmas Tree" is staged as one, starting at one window and going into a tree ornament inside, which leads into the window of the next segment, and so forth.
- Failures on Ice: The walruses in "Angels We Have Heard On High" aren't all that graceful on the ice.
- Fly Crazy: The goofy-looking bell uses his hammer to swat a fly that lands on his nose. Then, grimacing in disgust at the dead fly on it, he tosses the hammer away.
- The Klutz: The walruses in "Angels We Have Heard On High."
- Literalist Snarking:
- At the beginning of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," the California Raisins just realized that they have missed the last bus of the night.Raisin #1: So call me a cab.
Raisin #2: Hey, man. You're a cab. - Then, this exchange at the end:Rex: Say goodnight, Herb.
Herb: Goodnight, Herb.
- At the beginning of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," the California Raisins just realized that they have missed the last bus of the night.
- Messy Pig: A whole troupe of them sing "Here We Come A-Wallowing" while wallowing in a wagonload of... fruit.
- Missed the Bus: The California Raisins have just finished playing a nightclub when they realize they missed the last bus for the night. So they sing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" as they wait for Santa's sleigh to give them a ride.
- Mondegreen Gag: Is it "Here we come a-wassailing"? Or "Waffling" or "Waddling" or "Wallowing"?
- Real Life Writes the Plot: According to the commentary on the special's DVD, the recurring confusion over wassailing came about in the writer's room when those involved suffered an actual case of not understanding the song, choosing to incorporate it for some gags.
- Recursive Reality: Each of the vignettes on "O Christmas Tree" is within a tree ornament on the previous one.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Rex is stiff, formal, and irritable, while Herb is good-natured, easy-going and relaxed. They even have the appropriate colors!
- Sweet Tooth: Herb loves candy canes and other sweet treats.
- Warm-Hearted Walrus: The two ice-skaters during "Angels We Have Heard On High."
