"Where's your Christmas Spirit, Ren?"
The Ren and Stimpy Show: Have Yourself A Stinky Little Christmas is a special home video release of The Ren & Stimpy Show, originally released in 1993.
The special contains the episode "Son of Stimpy" as well as a Framing Device and an all-new music video, "Cat Hairballs."
The Framing Device starts on Christmas Eve, with Ren and Stimpy getting ready for bed. As to be expected, Stimpy is excited about Christmas and the visit from Santa. Ren, meanwhile, is Ren about it. In order to cheer up the ever-grumpy Ren, Stimpy puts on the music video and the episode.
A re-release in 1997 included not only the framing device and music video, but the episode "Big Flakes" as well.
The Framing Device contains examples of:
- Dope Slap: While trying to examine Ren with a pair of "Santa-scopic goggles", Stimpy gets a big slap to the face, which leaves the goggles askew.
- Goggles Do Something Unusual: The Santa-scopic goggles apparently have X-ray vision that also allows you to see someone's Christmas spirit.
- The Grinch: Ren is very much this, not having even an ounce of Stimpy's Christmas spirit and writing off Santa as "Kid's stuff. Crazy stuff!"
- Over The Top Christmas Decorations: A rare in-doors version. Stimpy decorated the inside of pair's bed room with not just garlands, tinsel, a Christmas wreath hanging, from the bed, and dozens of candy canes, but also strings of bright, red and green blinking lights. No wonder Ren is in a foul mood, he probably can't sleep with all that going on around him.
- Time-Passage Beard: In the last scene of the framing device, both Ren and Stimpy have stubble to show that they've been up all night watching tv.
The Cat Hairballs music video contains examples of:
- Christmas Songs: The song is meant to be a parody of Christmas music, and was originally part of a larger album of Christmas songs before being added to this special release and given a video.
- Show Within a Show: The music video is being shown to Ren as part of Stimpy's ploy to cheer him up.
- Song Parody: Of "Jingle Bells", utilizing the same tune and overall rhythm, though making it stand on its own with a lot more guitar and drums. As well as making the song about Stimpy being forced to hwarf up hairballs to the point of torture rather than winter festivities.
The Episode contains examples of:
- Christmas Episode: Though less emphasized than some examples, the episode takes place around Christmas, with plenty of yuletide imagery and elements abounding.
- Show Within a Show: With the added context of the Framing Device, the episode becomes this. Stimpy is playing the episode on their TV in order to get Ren into the Christmas spirit.
- Under the Mistletoe: Ren at one point tries to use mistletoe as a way to distract/deter Stimpy from looking for Stinky. To say it doesn't work would be an understatement.
- Wacky Sound Effect: The sounds from the TV Stimpy is watching at the start of the episode are the typical "boink, boing, kabong" sounds heard in a slapstick-style cartoon.
