History WesternAnimation / GrandmaGotRunOverByAReindeer

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* AdaptationExpansion: The song only describes Grandma being run over and the family being depressed at her death. The special throws in a plot to buy out Grandma's store, a scheme to sue Santa Claus, and even upgrades Cousin Mel, a minor character in the song who only gets mentioned once, to villain status.

* DisneyAcidSequence: Grandpa's song "Grandma's Spending Christmas with the Superstars," which he sings after mishearing the word ''sign'' as ''sing''. Mel and Slime's song "Grandpa's Gonna Sue the Pants Off Of Santa" also counts since they're dressed in sexy hula outfits and singing against a tropical-esque background.

* TheScrooge: Cousin Mel, who attempts to prevent Martha from buying a gingerbread house on layaway credit, only for Grandma Spankenheimer to recognize her as a trustworthy customer and okay the purchase.

** At one point, Grandma is reading a story about [[Music/StevieWonder a little Christmas tree.]]
** "So, in conclusion, if the mitt fits, you must acquit!"

* TheGrinch: Mel, who openly admits to hating the "goody-goody feelings of Christmas."

* TheGrinch: Cousin Mel who hates the Christmas season because she feels everybody makes a big deal out of it being "old-fashioned" and only enjoys a Christmas season that is over-commercialized and easy.

The special premiered on what was once The WB network and occasionally airs on its successor network, Creator/TheCW, at Christmas. However, it is mostly known for its more frequent airings on Creator/CartoonNetwork, during both the actual Christmas holiday and their Christmas in July events. Since 2017, it's been aired on Creator/{{Freeform}}.

Grandma [[UnfortunateNames Spankenheimer]] is a kindly old woman who loves to spread Christmas joy in Cityville. She also owns the only piece of property in town not owned by the Own-All Corporation...but she refuses to sell, to the chagrin of [[EvilIsSexy Cousin Mel]], [[MoneyDearBoy who just wants the money]]. Meanwhile, Jake, the film's main character, still fervently believes in Santa though his parents are trying to find a way to tell him the "truth." Of course, Grandma inevitably gets run over by a reindeer then vanishes. As the only two witnesses are Jake and his senile Grandpa, [[CassandraTruth nobody believes them]]. During Grandma's disappearance, Cousin Mel finally claims the store, leaving only Jake to save the store by proving Santa's existence. By the climax of the special, Santa is on trial for his crimes against Grandma and Cousin Mel is on the verge of getting both the store and (she assumes) the millions of dollars Santa must have by suing the crap out of him. Will Christmas prevail over evil? Will Grandma be safe? Will the villains get their comeuppance?

* UnfortunateNames: The family is named Spankenheimer (which sounds a lot like the name of a German porn star), the dog is named Doofus, and Mel's attorney is named I.M. Slime.

''Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer'' is a 2000 ChristmasSpecial adapted from the eponymous Elmo Shropshire novelty song and awkwardly shoehorning some of his other Christmas songs into the mix.

** The moment when Jake's eyes are briefly crossed. It looks pretty creepy, no doubt.

* ThatRemindsMeOfASong: A whole song is dedicated to how bad fruitcake is. More egregiously, the [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment Big Lipped Alligator Song]] started with Grandpa mishearing the word "sign" as "sing" and went on from there.

-->'''Slime:''' ''(typing on a calculator)'' Your share as Grandpa's financial advisor is... Woof!
-->'''Mel:''' Woof?
-->'''Slime:''' Woof.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar:
** Cousin Mel says (in Grandma's store) to Mr. Bucks: Why don't we go somewhere romantic and ''consummate'' this deal?
** Also, when Jake's dad calls the police to tell them that, well, Grandma got run over by a reindeer, he has to explain to the police that yes, they have been drinking eggnog.
** When the police come to investigate the crime scene where grandma was run over, the female officer briefly refers to her as an "old broad."
** During the “Grandma’s Spending Christmas with the Superstars” song, a pair of old women’s underwear is thrown to Grandpa from offscreen.

--> [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed No reindeer were harmed during the production of this motion picture.]]

-->'''Slime:''' ''(typing on a calculator)'' Your share as Grandpa's financial advisor is...Woof!

** When the police come to investigate the crime scene where grandma was run over, one of the officers briefly refers to her as an "old broad."

* SavingTheOrphanage: Saving Grandma's store is a critical plot point to the film. [[spoiler: Ultimately, it's saved by the restoration and rescue of Grandma and Austin Bucks having a change of heart; instead of trying to buy the store, he offers Grandma a more beneficial franchising deal that would allow her store to remain open and also spread more stores of the same type across the country.]]

* ShoutOut
** At one point, Grandma is reading a story about [[Music/StevieWonder a little Christmas Tree.]]

* SmokingGun: Type 2. [[spoiler: Jake manages to get Santa cleared of charges by bringing a fruitcake into the court case and exposing that Mel poisoned the fruit cakes. She admits her guilt and is arrested.]] As with all Type 2 examples, the new evidence is presented by someone bursting into the courtroom and presenting it without anyone questioning the legality.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Unlike the original song, Grandma doesn't ''die'' in this one. [[spoiler: She does get run over twice, though.]]

* TalkingAnimal: Santa's reindeer. Surprisingly, nobody finds this weird.
* ThatRemindsMeOfASong: A whole song is dedicated to how bad fruitcake is. But most egregiously, the [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment Big Lipped Alligator Song]] started with Grandpa mishearing the word "sign" as "sing" and went on from there.
%%* TitleDrop: A kid does say the title phrase at one point.
* UndisclosedFunds: I.M. Slime's estimate for how much Cousin Mel would get if they win the trial isn't revealed to the viewer, but it's implied to be a lot.
-->'''Slime:''' ''(typing on a calculator)'' Your share as Grandpa's financial advisor is... Woof!

* VillainSong: "Grandpa's Gonna Sue The Pants Off of Santa", about how they're gonna get Santa Claus thrown in jail just to get rich.

* WingdingEyes: Cousin Mel exhibits the dollar sign variant when Austin Bux mentions selling the store in the beginning.

Grandma [[UnfortunateNames Spankenheimer]] is a kindly old woman who loves to spread Christmas joy in Cityville. She also owns the only piece of property in town not owned by the Own-All Corporation... but she refuses to sell, to the chagrin of [[EvilIsSexy Cousin Mel]], [[MoneyDearBoy who just wants the money]]. Meanwhile, Jake, the film's main character, still fervently believes in Santa though his parents are trying to find a way to tell him the "truth." Of course, Grandma inevitably gets run over by a reindeer then vanishes. As the only two witnesses are Jake and his senile Grandpa, [[CassandraTruth nobody believes them]]. During Grandma's disappearance, Cousin Mel finally claims the store, leaving only Jake to save the store by proving Santa's existence. By the climax of the special, Santa is on trial for his crimes against Grandma and Cousin Mel is on the verge of getting both the store and (she assumes) the millions of dollars Santa must have by suing the crap out of him. Will Christmas prevail over evil? Will Grandma be safe? Will the villains get their comeuppance?

The special premiered on what was once The WB network, and occasionally airs on its successor network, Creator/TheCW, at Christmas. However, it is mostly known for its more frequent airings on Creator/CartoonNetwork, during both the actual Christmas holiday and their Christmas in July events. Since 2017, it currently airs on Creator/{{Freeform}}.

!!This show contains examples of:

* AdaptationalVillainy: In the song, Cousin Mel is only given a brief mention as playing cards with Grandpa after Grandma's death, and doesn't seem particularly malicious.

* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: After Cousin Mel admits to framing Santa they arrest her for the orchestrating the events leading to the disappearance of Grandma, framing Santa, [[AndThatsTerrible and almost ruining Christmas]].
* ArtisticLicenseGeography: Looking at the map of the United States during "Grandma's Killer Fruitcake," one notices that the animator apparently thought Minnesota & Wisconsin are one state; same for Iowa & Missouri, and Louisiana & Arkansas. Also, there is no Rhode Island or Long Island, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is apparently its own state.
%%* AmoralAttorney: Cousin Mel's lawyer, [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast I.M. Slime]].

%%* BigBad: Cousin Mel. Noticeable as the song really didn't ''have'' a villain and she was just an extra.

* CloudCuckooLander: Grandpa is either senile or just weird - either way, it becomes a problem when Mel uses his mental state to gain power of attorney over him.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Subverted. Austin Bucks owns the whole city except Grandma's store, which he wants to acquire; but he's depicted as more misguided than malicious, becoming Cousin Mel's UnwittingPawn instead of a villain.
* CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot: Taking Grandma to the North Pole rather than just a local hospital did more harm than good. Santa claims that he didn't do that because he didn't know she was.

%%* DisneyAcidSequence: Grandpa's song; Mel and her lawyer's song.

** In the original song, Grandma is clearly killed. In this version, she is merely knocked out, suffers from amnesia, and is carried away to the North Pole for medical attention. (Though the characters mostly assume she is dead.)
** She also got completely drunk before leaving and dying (eggnog is traditionally made with liquor). In the movie, she's merely ''allergic,'' and the "medication" is for her allergy as opposed to being a sign of senility.

%%* TheDragon: I.M. Slime to Cousin Mel.

* FourFingeredHands: All of the characters are this...Which is really odd seeing how they are drawn in a semi-realistic style. Let's just say that this didn't have a high budget and assume part of the budget meant all of the characters lost a finger on each hand.
* GenderBlenderName: Cousin Mel[[note]](probably short for Melanie or Melody)[[/note]] - depicted as a shapely woman in the film, though in the song itself, it was never clear if Mel was a man or a woman, or even an adult. (The original music video also depicted Cousin Mel as female, for the record; Elmo Shropshire's then-wife/bandmate Patsy portrayed her.)

** Cousin Mel says(in Grandma's store) to Mr. Bux: Why don't we go somewhere romantic and ''consummate'' this deal?

** When the police come to investigate the crime scene where grandma was run over, The police officer briefly prefers to her as a Brod.
** During the “Grandma’s Spending Christmas with a Superstar” song, a pair of old women’s underwear is thrown to Grandpa from offscreen.

%%* GoldDigger: Cousin Mel is explicitly described as one by Grandma.

* {{Goth}}: Though Daphne Spankenheimer (Jake's older sister) behaves more like a typical mainstream girl throughout the film, the scene that depicts the family wearing black around Christmas time while Grandma's missing shows Daphne wearing a very gothic looking outfit (though [[PerkyGoth she's smiling]] in the scene).
%%* TheGrinch: Mel

%%* HeterosexualLifePartners: Slime and Mel after their DisneyAcidSequence dance scene together.

** Then there's the note that Santa left at the scene of the accident. It too would be inadmissible because there was no way to prove that it was left at the scene of the crime. The only thing they could prove is that Santa wrote it, but that wouldn't do jack. Then on top of that they say to dust the note for fingerprints (which supposedly would've implicated Mel) but Doofus had the note in his mouth, and Grandpa was holding it without gloves, so even if they had proved Santa had left it behind, they still wouldn't have been able to implicate Mel and her attorney, making her confession all the more baffling.
* ICantBelieveItsNotHeroin: "Reindeer-nip". Reindeer (and apparently no other ungulates of any sort) will drop everything and come running at the slightest whiff of this stuff, and if an old lady happens to be between them and the goods, well, you've got yourself a novelty holiday song!
* InformedAttribute: The whole [[StockYuck "disgustingness"]] surrounding Grandma's fruitcake. In the song "Grandma's Killer Fruitcake", we're told that her fruitcake is "harder than the head of Uncle Bucky", "dryer than a drought in Albuquerque", and "enough to give the whole state of Kentucky a great big bellyache", giving the impression that Grandma is a LethalChef and her fruitcake is considered gross. But it's also stated to be a famous recipe and during the courtroom scene, people are shown eating and visibly enjoying the fruitcake that wasn't tainted by reindeer-nip.

* NoNameGiven: Everyone, even the people who aren't related to them, simply refer to the elder Spankenheimers as "Grandma" and "Grandpa".

* PunnyName: Austin ''Bux'' is rich, ''I.M. Slime'' is...[[EvilLawyerJoke a lawyer.]]
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: The Judge [[spoiler: presiding over Santa's court case.]] She's willing to hear Jake out and take his evidence and testimony seriously, despite the objections of the prosecution.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Cousin Mel says(in Grandma's store) to Mr. Bux: Why don't we go somewhere romantic and ''consummate'' this deal?

%%* {{Beat}}: We get one after I.M. Slime's name is said for the first time.

%%* EvilRedhead: Cousin Mel.

-->'''Cousin Mel''' (in Grandma's store to Mr. Bux): Why don't we go somewhere romantic and ''consummate'' this deal?

%%* WingdingEyes: Cousin Mel exhibits the dollar sign variant. %% When? %%

* HollywoodLaw: In real life, Jake's evidence would have been thrown out of court because it was a fruitcake they had just made, not the same one from the scene of the accident.

* PunchClockVillain: Pretty much anyone involved in Santa's trial other than Cousin Mel and I.M. Slime. Heck, the prosecutor admits that he doesn't want Santa to go to jail ''during his closing statement'', but must do his job.

* SparedByTheAdaptation: Unlike the original song, Grandma doesn't ''die'' in this one. [[spoiler: She does get run over twice though.]]

%%* VillainousFriendship

* PunchClockVillain: Pretty much anyone involved in Santa's trial other than Cousin Mel and I.M. Slime. Heck, the prosecutor admits that he doesn't want Santa to go to jail ''during his closing statement.''

* GenderBlenderName: Cousin Mel[[note]](probably short for Melanie or Melody)[[/note]] - depicted as a shapely woman in the film, though in the song itself, it was never clear if Mel was a man or a woman, or even an adult. (The original music video also depicted Cousin Mel as female, for the record; Elmo Shropshire's then-wife Patsy portrayed her.)